In it to win it
by radioboca
Summary: Pre-ESB, Leia and Han are sent to a remote planet to help win an election that will ensure the Alliance has access to materials critical to the war effort. But democracy is never simple.
1. Chapter 1

Leia Organa stood in the open hangar of the newly designated Echo Base, watching a combination of Rebels and droids unload pallets from the back of a freighter. In a reversal of the typical scenario, the load bearing droids seemed to be struggling more than their sentient counterparts, their joints stiffening in the frigid wind that swept in through the hangar door. Leia had offered to help but had been rebuffed, so instead she stood to the side checking numbers against her datapad.

"Let's get these straight back to the crew ready rooms," she told the freighter pilot, a Twi'lek with layers of knitting wrapped around her lekku in an effort to ward off the cold. She pulled over a large hover cart and organized the crew to move the pallets. With a satisfied nod, Leia sent off a transmission to the command center and then checked her chrono, scurrying off for her next meeting.

"Hey, your worship." Her head down to mitigate the chill on her face, Leia hadn't noticed Han Solo walking into the hangar with two unfamiliar pilots. "Slow down. You're gonna hurt somebody."

"Sorry," she snapped, neatly stepping around them and heading on her way. Abruptly she stopped and turned around. "If you're not busy, Captain Pala could use some help moving those new uniforms into the ready room."

The two pilots, dressed in the casual jumpsuits that marked them part of a Y-wing squadron, sighed and then gave her a quick salute, heading over to join the assembly line of workers moving the loads across the base. Standing stock still, Solo glared at Leia.

"I'll have you know we were in fact going to be busy," he said.

"Doing what? Playing sabacc?"

Annoyed, he didn't answer, turning on his heel to stalk back towards the mess hall and find some new card players. "You could help too," she shouted after him, before realizing that she was now well and truly late to her meeting. She muttered a curse under her breath, debating the merits of running. The previous week she had wrenched her knee slipping on a patch of floor that had been polished to a sheen by the incessant parade of droids working to carve out enough space to house the thousands of Rebels that would ultimately be stationed. Uninterested in another humiliating trip to the infirmary on a stretcher, she decided to walk. Quickly.

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Leia pulled up a chair, mumbling an excuse for her tardiness as she sat down at the wobbly conference table in the small meeting room outside the command center. She gratefully accepted the coffee Colonel Firest passed her. As the hot liquid hit her stomach, she realized she'd had nothing to eat all day.

"We're just now getting started," General Rieekan reassured her. "I know you were busy with the uniform shipment. Good job on that, by the way."

Leia nodded, grateful the procurement had gone as planned. The Rebels had gotten word of a demilitarization pact on the Inner Rim planet of Kinlesa V. Ironically, it was an Imperial-brokered settlement between the two continental powers that resulted in a flood of military surplus on the planetary market. The princess had gone personally to arrange the sale of uniforms intended for use in Kinlesa's frigid mountain regions at a cut rate price.

"I've asked Colonel Firest to join us today because we are looking at a rather unusual opportunity," Rieekan continued. "Colonel, go ahead."

"Thank you, General," Colonel Firest started. "I'll try to be brief. We've begun installation of the V-150 ion cannon but we're dealing with some technical difficulties because of the ambient temperature. I've never seen this before, but the rate of reaction in the core is actually slowing because enough energy is being sapped out in spite of the insulated plating. Our techs have been working on it, and have found a solution. If we can seed the reactor core with a precise amount of the right element, we can average a reaction rate to the gun's specs and make it work."

"So what is it exactly that you need?"

"Our calculations show that terellium has the characteristics we require," Major T'tar, one of the technicians spoke up.

Leia shook her head. "I've never heard of it."

"It's naturally occurring, but the only known supply that doesn't need significant refining is found on Retacy III, in the Outer Rim," Firest continued.

"Which is what brings us to this meeting," Rieekan said. "We sent a recon team to Retacy to scope out the situation there. The good news is that there is absolutely no Imperial presence: this element is only a moderate export, and rarely has military applications."

"And the bad news?" Leia knew there was more to it.

"The shell corporation we used as a front to try to buy the terellium got rebuffed. Apparently there is significant disagreement in the planetary legislature about whether it should be stockpiled or sold, and they are freezing the supply until after the vote. Our source said it's likely to come down to party lines." He paused to sip his coffee before continuing. "The legislature is currently at a standstill because Representative…" he glanced down at his notes, "Chell recently passed away suddenly. A special election is scheduled to fill his seat in a month's time, and the winner of that election will determine whether the terellium is made available."

"So you want me to figure out a way to sneak it out before the election?" Leia asked, wondering why she'd be called in for this mission. Usually the truly cloak-and-dagger work was handled by less famous faces.

"No," Rieekan said with a smile. "One of the candidates is interested in being helpful to Alliance. She's down in the polls, but she's in the late Representative Chell's party so she has a good shot at winning. We want you to go to Retacy and help her win the election."

Leia raised her eyebrows. "I realize you said there's no Imperial presence, but I assume you mean undercover?"

"Of course, Princess," Rieekan reassured her. "It'll be you and a bodyguard. We already have false identities manufactured and our candidate," He glanced down at his notes again, "Carrella Starn, is awaiting the help. We told her we'd send our best."

"It's been a few years since I was in any sort of campaign," Leia warned him, "I'll do my best, but I'm not making any promises. Who's going with me?"

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As the meeting ended and the attendees filed out, Leia stayed behind, shutting the door after Firest before whirling on Rieekan.

"You were very diplomatic there, Princess," he said before she could launch into her tirade.

"Why him? Why?"

"I needed someone who could handle this job, and frankly who I trusted to take care of you," Rieekan told her bluntly.

"Why not Luke?" she argued. "And I don't need to be taken care of!"

"Luke's a commander now. He can't just leave his squadron for a month, you know that."

"I'm sure there's someone else then…"

"Leia." Rieekan sighed, and Leia felt a flash of guilt for leveling such a petty complaint at him when there was so much to do to set up the base. He'd been supportive of her need to do something tangible to support the Rebellion, giving her procurement duties that helped feed and clothe and arm the soldiers. But she still had the sense that he saw her as a child, and telling her she needed a bodyguard on an Imperial-free planet stuck in her craw.

"I'm not sure exactly how to put this. I've had a number of….well, complaints from some of the enlisted soldiers that I've assigned to your teams lately."

Leia fell silent for a moment. "What do you mean, complaints?"

"That you're hard to work with, or more often that you're hard to live with in small spaces. It's nothing you should be embarrassed about, but it does tie my hands a bit."

The princess stared at him dumbly. "I've never shirked, Carlist. You know that."

"Of course I do. That's not the issue. You're in an unusual situation, and you have make accommodations for that though. We should be grateful that there are people around who aren't intimidated."

"I can go myself," Leia insisted, annoyed at the direction the conversation was moving. "I don't need a bodyguard."

"You're going with Solo and that's an order," he said finally, standing up to leave. "I'll have the briefing materials delivered to your quarters. Why don't you go get some rest? You leave at 0400 tomorrow."

Turning on her heel, Leia stalked out of the room, heading for the mess hall. On an empty stomach, the coffee had made her slightly ill, and she grabbed a packet of crackers off the table in the entry before walking briskly back to the ready room to help sort and distribute uniforms. Rieekan watched her disappear down the hall in the opposite direction of her quarters and shook his head.

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"Sorry, these are only for enlisted soldiers," Leia said coldly as Han Solo walked into the ready room, his pockets bulging after he had relieved two non-coms of their weekly pay in a friendly game of sabacc. He made it up to them by offering them a bottle of whiskey to take back to their quarters- no need to make enemies as long as he was stuck on this ice cube.

"I wasn't coming for a uniform, sweetheart," he responded, looking disdainfully at the fleece and fur lined jackets. "You roped me into this trip, and we need some supplies. Retacy III is a good two days out."

"I roped you into this trip?" Leia said indignantly. She noticed the other supply room staff deliberately trying to move towards the other end of the room, and lowered her voice. "The first I heard of it was when General Rieekan ordered me to go with you."

"Right…" said Han skeptically. "I'm sure that's exactly how it went down."

A pair of Rebel pilots came in, and Leia busied herself fitting them with jackets, ignoring Han as he leaned casually against the doorframe, watching her. As they left, he began picking through a shelf of boxes to her right.

"Will you stop that? We just put those in order," she snapped. "What do you need?"

"Food supplies, and a first aid kit. Used up the last of my bandages on that trip to Ruuria with Luke. That kid sure is a klutz for being a Jedi or whatever."

"Here." Leia pointed towards a shelf. "Take what you need. Nothing else."

"Of course, your highnessness. I've discovered there's not much money to be had anyways in selling black market Alliance bandages." He reached up into the crates, grabbing out a few items. "How long you going to stay here? We're scheduled to head out pretty early tomorrow. I'm turning in."

"That's nice," Leia commented over her shoulder as she repacked the jackets into another crate. "See you at 0400."

"Aren't you going to get some sleep?"

"I'll be fine, thanks."

"He's right, Princess." Commander Minz, assigned to run the evening shift in the supply room, spoke up. "You've been at this for a while. Why don't you let us handle the rest?"

With a tight smile, Leia nodded to Minz and walked out, sensing that Han was trailing her down the hall.

"Can I help you with anything else, Captain?"

"Just thought I'd be polite and walk you to your quarters," he said affably, offering an arm. She rolled her eyes and hurried ahead, forcing him to jog a few steps to catch up before he was able to match her stride. They turned down the south passage and around the corner to the officer's quarters.

"Thanks," she said flatly as the door to her room slid open.

"Get some sleep, okay?" The teasing lilt had dropped out of his voice. Leia turned around and picked up a datapad that had been left for her on the small table.

"It wouldn't hurt for you to read up on Retacy too," she said, holding up the datapad as she hit the control to shut the door in his face.


	2. Chapter 2

The recon team that had made the original overtures on Retacy didn't know much about politics, Leia thought, as she leafed through her briefing materials. There was a cut-and-pasted entry from an encyclopedia giving background on the political system, which was comfortingly familiar: a two party system with a unicameral legislature, headed by an elected planetary leader. The president was selected from the 60 member legislature, however, and recent years had exposed a significant flaw in the design of the government. Growing animosity between the agriculture and urban regions led to nearly an exact split in party control. The passing of Representative Chell, one of the old lions of the body and an influential voice for bipartisan cooperation, created an opportunity for a new member to substantially affect significant policies. Trade in raw elements was obviously the main interest for the Alliance, but Leia was interested to see that the campaign also focused on taxation and education.

Unfortunately that was the beginning and the end of her background information. Nothing on the two candidates' backgrounds, the poll numbers, their platforms. She'd just have to wait and find out when they arrived.

"Hey, your worship, come gimme a hand!" Leia grimaced, setting down her datapad and meandering into the cockpit where Han was posed in a bizarre contortion—one hand clinging to a handle suspended above the viewport, the other fumbling to depress a button next to the pilot's seat. Leia stood back for a minute, chuckling at his predicament, until Han finally noticed her.

"Nice," he muttered, then gestured down to the control panel. "Press that button until it starts beeping, okay?"

"Aren't you going to say please?" Leia squeezed her way around the captain, who was now balanced on his chair as he opened a panel above and fiddled with some wires. She pushed down the button with her thumb, counting to five.

"It's not beeping," she told him—or more accurately, told his rear end, which was directly at eye level. She turned away quickly to stare out at the swirling shapes and colors of hyperspace. Han Solo's butt was not something she needed to be thinking about at the moment.

"Keep holding it," he told her, his voice muffled by machinery. "There." There was a snap of sparks, and Solo dropped down as the panel let out a rhythmic bleeping.

"Fixed?" Leia raised her eyebrows suspiciously. A thin wisp of white smoke was creeping out from behind the panel.

"Yup." Han smacked the panel, dispersing the smoke as Leia headed back for the lounge. "Just a little glitch in the navicomputer."

"Oh, is that all?" Leia's voice was more sarcastic than she intended. "Glad to hear it wasn't something serious."

"You've got nothing to worry about, sweetheart." Han grinned and followed her into the lounge. "Now, how about some grub?"

"Have you looked over your false identification?" Leia asked as he walked over to the small galley and started pulling out cans and boxes. "The information is on your datapad."

"Yeah, I'll check it before we land." He lit one of the burners, wrinkling his nose as he examined the choices of soup he'd grabbed from the Alliance larder.

"Han!" Leia stood, crossing her arms and glaring across the room. "You're going to compromise the mission if you don't take this seriously."

"Since when have I ever compromised a mission?" he said to the stove, ignoring her scowl. "I'll take care of it, trust me. 'Sides, I thought I was just supposed to be staying out of the way anyways."

"You are. But you still need an identity that will pass muster. You have no idea how personal politics can get."

"Not for me, sweetheart." He dipped a spoon into the bubbling soup on the stove, adding in a dash of salt and a good helping of spicy benaro peppers after tasting a sample. "Politics is your territory. I'm just there for my blaster and good looks."

"Good thing you have a decent blaster," Leia quipped, looking back at her own identification documents. She was going to be Kesia Harwano, a political consultant from the nearby planet of Sorm. During the negotiations, the Starn campaign had already been warned that the Alliance's services would be completely behind closed doors, but Leia mentally prepared herself for at least some scrutiny as an off planet ringer. Her experience in the Senate taught her that last minute changes in campaign staffing or strategy were often a sign of weakness, and Starn's opponent would presumably be searching for any cracks in the armor. Originally Han was intended to pose as her assistant, but to Leia's relief Rieekan decided that having two Alliance representatives appear together was too suspicious. Instead, Han was going to lay low, posing instead as Sasbao Simmil, a salesman on an extended vacation where he could keep an eye on the princess without getting involved with their hosts.

Han, of course, didn't know any of this yet, Leia thought as she focused on her own work, since he hadn't bothered to review the briefing documents. Idly, she wondered if she could hack in and add some obnoxious little tidbit to his identity file: a noted obsession with collection bean bags in the shape of animals, or a religious affiliation that required him to wear only purple. She smiled at the thought as Han was turning around to serve dinner.

"What?" he asked, winking at her. "You suddenly realize what a treat it is to have me take you to dinner?"

"Yes, you really know how to impress a lady," she responded drily as she dipped a spoon into the soup, watching the beans splosh unappetizingly back into her bowl. "What did you put in this?"

"It's a secret recipe." He took a tentative sip himself, then tucked in with a deliberate relish to see if it would get a rise out of the princess. She ignored him and took a bite, immediately turning red and coughing into her napkin. "Too spicy for you?"

"It's fine," she choked out, taking a gulp of water. "I'm just not very hungry tonight."

"Nah, I'm sorry, Princess. I forgot you weren't raised on good Corellian food. I'll make you a sandwich."

"Don't bother," she said, waving him away. "I don't think I have any taste buds left." Dutifully, she took another spoonful of soup, swallowing it quickly. "Hopefully they have decent food on Retacy."

"You sound like you're looking forward to this trip," Han remarked as he finished his soup.

"I'll be the first to admit that I'm glad to get off Hoth for a while," she agreed, rubbing her arms from the memory of the bone chilling cold. "But it's not a 'trip,' Han—we have a job to do."

"I don't understand why we can't just smuggle out the terrellium." Han picked up his bowl, noticing that Leia had only taken a few bites. "Seems like it would be faster and simpler than going through all this bureaucratic bantha crap."

"Retacy is an unaligned world right now, Han." Leia used the lecturing tone that he hated, indicating she was about to launch into some sort of holier-than-thou speech about the purpose of government or other nonsense. "The Alliance has to respect planetary sovereignty over natural resources. Otherwise, how are we any better than the Empire?"

"But how is manipulating an election to get the results we want any different?"

"I'm not going to be manipulating an election, Captain." She pursed her lips, offended at his insinuation. "I'm just going to be helping Carrella Starn communicate her qualifications to the voters. They still have to decide."

"Why does she need you to do that, then? If she's so fit for the job, what's the point of sending in some outside expert."

"It's not necessarily about what you believe," she said. "People are busy. Sometimes you have to catch their attention in the right way to make sure they understand where you are on the issues they care about. Think about it—when you vote, did you interview each candidate? Read through their policy papers? Or did you just go off holo ads and slogans?" She crossed her arms smugly, waiting for him to concede the point.

"Sweetheart, I have never voted in my life."

Han had to stop himself from laughing at the look of righteous shock on Leia's face. "What was the point?" he continued, desperately trying not to smirk. "The Emperor has been running things since I was just a squirt."

"But you…surely…the Senate was…" Leia sputtered. She stopped to gather her thoughts. "I beg your pardon, Captain. I'm just surprised that someone so willing to risk their life for democracy would be unwilling to take part in it."

"Well, I guess I can be surprising." He hated when she got judgmental and high-and-mighty, especially when he had been so close to taking her down a peg. Oh well. Point Organa. It wasn't his fault if she was so damn good at shifting the conversation to her favor. "I'm gonna go check our progress." He slipped out of the lounge into the cockpit, watching Leia turn back to her datapad out of the corner of his eye.

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Han whistled admiringly as Leia stepped out of the 'fresher, her long brunette hair transformed into a mess of blonde curls. "Cute look on you, sweetheart."

"Shut up." Leia wrinkled her nose. "I didn't do this for you."

"Doesn't mean I can't enjoy it," he responded. "C'mon, it's fun. Have you looked at yourself?"

"Yes, I've looked at myself. By the way, the fan in your 'fresher is broken. The chemicals in this dye nearly knocked me out."

"Shoulda called me in to help."

"It goes on in the shower," she hissed.

"So?"

As they prepared to land, Leia changed into the outfit the advance team had brought back from Retacy for her. She was grateful to see that the planet didn't have any outlandish fashion trends—quite to the contrary, she had been given a soft t-shirt and thick canvas pants. Clothes for working in, she thought, taking a deep breath to mentally insert herself into her new identity. She went incognito on missions with some frequency, but it never failed to rattle her ever so slightly. It wasn't a betrayal of herself, she knew, but somehow she could never convince her innermost self that her disguises were a harmless part of their mission to defeat the Empire. Perhaps it was because she sometimes found herself envying her aliases, wondering what it would be like if she could just finish a job and go home to a normal life without the agony that defined her day to day existence….

She strapped herself into the oversized copilot's seat, peeking out the viewport for her first glimpse of their destination. They were landing at the spaceport in the regional capital of Ecerm, an area noted for clouds and rain, and the forecasts didn't disappoint. The view as they landed was shrouded in a blanket of misty precipitation, the buildings ghostly through the fog. Switching over to sensors, Han guided them downwards to the appointed landing bay.

"Guess it's better than snow," he said as he began powering down the Falcon. "You bring an umbrella?"

Leia shook her head. "We have raincoats. Don't worry, you won't melt."

"Just don't want you to catch cold, your worship." He pulled on a jacket, zipping it to cover his blaster. "You stay here, I'm gonna go check things out quick."

"Starn's people are supposed to be meeting us here," Leia protested, nonetheless pulling on a jacket herself.

"Not for half an hour." Han stood in the doorway between the cockpit and lounge, blocking Leia from stepping around him. "I'll be back before that. You wait here. Why don't you look at your datapad for a while?"

Scowling, Leia sat back down, accepting the datapad he thrust into her hands. Han gave her one last warning look and then slipped out, locking the exit behind him.

The spaceport was right in the main part of Ecerm, and as Han walked past the office and control tower he emerged directly into a canyon of office buildings—nothing like Coruscant, of course, but still dominating the sky. Workers strolled down the sidewalks, mostly oblivious to the misty rain, returning from their lunch breaks or heading to meetings with colleagues. No one paid Han any mind.

"'Scuse me." Han turned around as a finger tapped his shoulder to see a young bearded man, dressed far more casually than the surrounding crowds, holding a clipboard. "You have a moment for the environment?"

"Sorry, kid, not right now."

"The election's coming up, you know. You can make a difference." The kid's voice was flat as he pressed Han—obviously he was used to be rejected offhand. Han kept walking, and the kid turned to his next mark: a woman who had slowed long enough to make the mistake of eye contact.

Circling the next block with his hands in his pockets, Han spotted no less than four billboards plastered with flattering pictures of Carrella Starn—a pleasant looking woman in her forties—and Bill Morrs, whom Han took to be her opponent. He rolled his eyes as he read the vapid slogans- Starn works for you! Morrs for our families! thanking his lucky stars that these people were going to be Leia's problem.

Looking down at his chrono, he picked up the pace as he hurried back, not wanting to be late for the scheduled meeting with Carrella. As he stepped into the small hangar, he was chagrined to see Leia standing outside of the Falcon, chatting with the woman he recognized from the billboard and a young man.

Leia shot him a nanoseconds worth of a dirty look before smiling broadly and gesturing to him. "Carrella, Ty, this is Sasbao Simmil."

"Call me Sas," he said gruffly, extending a hand as he wracked his brain to try to remember any mention of a "Ty" from their briefing materials. Rieekan had told him that only Carrella knew they were from the Alliance, and he didn't want to accidentally reveal anything in front of this unexpected stranger.

"Carrella Starn," she said, gripping his hand in a well practiced shake. "This is my son, Ty."

Son. Well, Han still wasn't sure. He didn't like unilateral changes to plans, but Leia seemed fine so he rolled with it for the time being.

"Kesia, are you ready to go? I called a staff meeting for this afternoon so you can introduce yourself, and I thought you might want the next few hours to get situated." Carrella had a permanent smile on her face, but Han could tell she was impatient to get back to the office. "Sas, Ty can escort you to the rooms we set up for you."

"Thanks." He raised an eyebrow at Leia, who gave a nearly imperceptible nod before trotting off alongside Carrella, a small satchel hanging from her shoulder. Han didn't like leaving her, but she was armed and seemed safe enough for the moment. And this gave him a chance to figure out this Ty person a little bit.

"Nice ship," Ty said as Han went in to grab his overnight bag. "Corellian, right?"

"That's right." This planet wasn't completely cut off from the galaxy, he reminded himself, trying not to be paranoid just yet.

"I've only ever seen a couple Corellian ships, but I've heard they're the best." Han couldn't stop a small smile of pride at the praise for his home planet. "I don't think even my mom could ever afford one though."

"Got this one used," Han told him, wondering how old the kid was. He looked like he was around Luke's age, maybe a few years older, with that same starry eyed ambition.

"I'm saving up for a ship of my own," Ty continued. "Nothing big like this, but it would be nice to be able to not have to fly commercial when I've got business trips to Sorm."

"Business trips?"

"Yeah." Ty stood a little straighter, trying to appear more professional. "I'm executive vice president at Starncorp."

"I'm sure you earned that position fair and square." Han heard the words come out of his mouth before he could stop himself. Leia was going to kill him.

Thankfully Ty just laughed. "I know, I know. But I am trying hard to be worth my salary." They had reached the speeder parking area, and Ty gestured to a sleek black two seater. "Off we go."

They reached the residential building quickly, in part due to Ty's flagrant flouting of speed regulations, and Han climbed out and followed the young man to an elevator. Ty handed him a keycard.

"You're in room 602, and your…uh…girlfriend?"

"Partner. Business partner."

"Right. She's in 604, right next door. It's all furnished, no cleaning service, but let us know if you need anything."

"Thanks, Ty." Han shook his hand again, and the young man was off.

Stepping into the elevator, he reran their conversation through his head, trying to identify any clues about whether Ty knew the real provenance of his mother's new campaign consultant. The kid seemed more interested in money and expensive speeders than politics, and Han hoped that meant his mom kept him in the dark about Leia's political affiliations per their agreement with the Alliance. Luke and Leia aside, he didn't trust young people not to blab at inopportune times.

The room was nice enough, and he was grateful to see a double locked door connecting his space to Leia's. There was a single bed, a small desk with a computer port, a cabinet hiding a holoproj unit, and a spacious 'fresher unit with a water shower and bathtub. Certainly nicer than about ninety percent of the places he'd spent the night in the last twenty years.

He tried the door to Leia's room, but it needed to be unlocked from her side as well. Undaunted, he set to work picking the lock, pushing the door open as the bolt popped back. Her space was the mirror opposite of his, though a pile of flimsis sat on the desk with a handwritten note on top. He pulled a scanner from his overnight bag and gave the room a once over for any bugs, and then picked up the note.

"Ecerm Tribune, last two months," it said. He flipped through the papers, seeing that someone had marked the stories about the election beginning with the announcement of the sudden death of former Representative Chell. Starn had announced her candidacy within a few days of his funeral, followed closely by Morrs. The story had a small note at the end about another candidate named Heath Dolmin, but few of the later stories had any mentions of him. Han skimmed over one longer piece about a debate between the candidates, yawning as the reporter plodded through a long description of Carrella Starn's position on school funding. It was amazing, he thought, in this day and age that there are still places in the galaxy where the number of kids in an elementary school class still makes a front page story. These people must have never heard of the Death Star.


	3. Chapter 3

Leia found her stomach churning as Carrella led her into the dilapidated building housing the campaign headquarters. It had been so long since her daily tasks focused on polls and voter registration numbers instead of firefights and subterfuge. The transition back to normalcy, or at least the semblance thereof, was nervewracking, and as the elevator doors closed on them, she felt an urge to flee.

Get it together, Organa, she told herself silently. You can do this.

The office itself had the comforting familiarity of all political headquarters- messy, with scraps of paper thrown haphazardly over desks and tacked to walls above old donated computer screens. Five or six people, mostly young, were crowded around three desks, barely looking up from their work as their candidate walked in. The background buzz of incoming and outgoing comms filled the air, and Leia saw one young woman give a thumbs up as she chattered animatedly on a headset.

"Good news?" Carrella asked her with a smile as the woman ended her call.

"Another committed voter." She checked off a box on a sheet of flimsi and went back to dialing.

Carrella walked to the center of the room, kicking aside a cardboard box that had once held hot food, and clapped her hands for attention.

"Everyone, this is Kesia," she said, gesturing at Leia, who smiled and gave a small wave. "She's coming in to make sure we win this thing next month. We'll sit down with her in a couple hours to hash out our plan, but for right now I want you to make sure she has everything she needs to get up to speed on the race." The staff nodded an assent and then ducked back to their work.

"You can use this office," Carrella continued, pointing to a door that led into a cramped space—obviously a converted coat closet. "I apologize that we don't have more room, but I was made to understand that you don't mind roughing it a bit."

"Not at all," Leia assured her.

"Now what can I get you?" Carrella had quickly shifted from gracious host to no-nonsense businesswoman, and Leia appreciated the change. She'd known more than one person, even on Alderaan, who had lost an election because they didn't take things seriously.

"Voter files, and any poll numbers you have with questions and cross tabs." Thankfully, Leia found the practice was coming back to her quickly. "If you've got any demographic info on the district that would be helpful too, and the budget. It would be helpful to know what you've been doing so far and what the results have been."

Two hours later, Leia rubbed her eyes, tired from staring at the piles and piles of paper and electronic files that Carrella and her staff had dumped onto her tiny desk. With a month to go, the news wasn't great: Carrella was still trailing in the polls, and her current efforts didn't seem to be convincing any non-committed voters.

"Ready to meet?" the older woman asked, poking her head through the door.

"I am." Leia joined the rest of the staff in the main room, where they all looked to her expectantly. "Hi, everybody."

Carrella sat back, obviously expecting Leia to lead the discussion. "Well, why don't we start with introductions. You can tell me a little about yourself and why you're working on this campaign. Then we can brainstorm about which voters we need to target and how."

A man with a shock of red hair and a messy goatee started off. "I'm Eri," he said. "I've been the campaign manager." Uh oh, Leia thought, realizing that he likely felt sidelined by her sudden arrival.

"Nice to meet you, Eri," she said, "And you still are the campaign manager. I'm just here to help with some strategic decisions. It's important that the structure of the campaign remain consistent—otherwise it makes Carrella look like she's getting desperate, which wouldn't help any of us."

Slightly mollified but still looking suspicious, Eri continued. "I've been interested in politics for a while and worked on Mayor Caran's campaign last year. Before that I worked at an environmental group. Carrella approached me right before she announced her candidacy—I guess I really just don't want to see Morrs win. That guy would cut down all the forests if he thought it would net him a quick credit."

Leia smiled, envying his idealistic passion. Han always teased her about being an idealist, but he had never been around young people who believed they truly could make a difference in the universe just by defeating a single legislative candidate on a far flung planet. She used to feel that way too. Briefly, she wondered what he would think if he knew Leia's only purpose there was to ensure availability of terrellium on the galactic market.

"Great," she said. "Who's next?"

As they finished going around, Leia looked down at her scribbled notes. Nearly everyone in the room was a veteran of some sort of environmental advocacy organization. From her brief review of the race, Leia knew that Carrella's opponent was known for his strong belief in infrastructure development. He'd managed to bring the construction and business groups on board, leaving Carrella lagging in contributions, but at least she had the bona fides to win over the conservationists. Now they just had to figure out how to turn that into a victory.

"Okay." Leia took out a fresh sheet of flimsi "Our challenge now is to get those voters who haven't been paying much attention to this point aware of the race and the contrasts between the two candidates. I'm thinking we need a big event to wake people up a bit and build some momentum going into the final month….ideas?"

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It was well into the late evening before they broke up, tasks in hand. Leia stifled a yawn, feeling slightly nauseated from the combination of space travel lag and junk food.

"Where are you staying?" Eri asked as she gathered up her notes. "I can give you a ride."

"I'll take her," Carrella said, steering Leia out the door. "See you bright and early in the morning."

Leia struggled to keep her eyes open as Carrella steered through the deserted streets. "They're a good group of kids," she said. "Very hard working."

"They seem very passionate," Leia added. "Do you have an environmental background yourself? That seemed like a theme today."

"My degree is in environmental engineering," Carrella told her. "It's a family tradition. My great grandmother started Starncorp more than seventy years ago."

"And what does Starncorp do, exactly?"

"We've diversified in the last several years, but it's still focused on engineering projects, some commodities trade…I'm sure the details would bore you to tears."

Leia was about to press further when Carrella brought the speeder to a halting stop. "Here we are! Home sweet home. Are you all right to go up yourself? Your companion should be there already with the keys."

"I'll call him," Leia said, stepping out of the speeder and watching as Carrella zipped away. Stepping into the lobby, she commed Han and then waited, staring at the cheap reproduction artwork in the lobby until the elevator opened. A well-rested looking Han Solo was inside.

"This way," he said, taking the pile of papers from her arms as he escorted her up to the rooms.

"Have you been here all day?" Leia asked as they stepped into the hallway.

"You told me to lay low. 'Sides, there was a smashball game on."

"Glad to hear you had a productive day."

Han just smirked at her. "And how was your day, Princess?"

"Long." She followed him into her room, collapsing into a chair. "I think we can pull this off, but it's going to be a lot of work."

"Well, if you need help…"

"It's not your kind of work," she told him. "No blasters required."

"Sounds boring."

"Yes, delightfully so."

Han propped himself on the arm of her chair. "Oh, c'mon, Princess. Admit it—sometimes you like the gunslinging. You're awfully good at it."

"I do have one thing you could do, actually," she said, quickly changing the subject.

"What's that?"

"Do a little recon on Carrella Starn. She seemed a little dodgy when we were talking about her company—I want to know more about it."

"What do you mean, dodgy?" Han tensed slightly. "You think there's something off about her?"

"No, no." Leia almost regretted having asked. "Nothing like that. I just want to know if there's anything lurking out there that should concern us." He continued to give her a skeptical look. "For the election, Han. That's all."

He took a deep breath. "Maybe it would be better if I came with you tomorrow."

"And why is that?"

"Just in case."

"Han." Leia bit her lip, annoyed that she once again had to have this conversation. "I don't need you there. I don't need anyone."

"I guess you really are a politician," he responded, standing up and heading for the door. "You're already lying through your teeth." He peeked out into the hall. "Look, just knock if you need anything. I'm right next door."

"Thanks," she said tightly, picking up her papers.

"You're welcome, your worshipfulness." Shutting the door perhaps a little too firmly behind him, he stalked back into his room, turning on the holo to catch the last quarter of his game. At least this trip had some perks.

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Leia was already gone when Han woke up, her bed neatly made with a note laying on top of her pillow as if she knew he'd come in once he realized that he had forgotten to give her the key card. It simply said "Starncorp" and an address. Sighing, he shoved it in his pocket, fighting the urge to simply show up at the campaign office.

The downtown was relatively small, the skyscrapers crammed into a few blocks that quickly leveled out into a more reasonable collection of five and six story buildings. The Starncorp headquarters was on the very edge of the forest of skyscrapers, occupying four floors of a massive grey monolith. Never one for sneaking around, Han decided his best bet was to head straight for the top to check in on his new buddy Ty Starn. He figured he'd think of an excuse for his visit during the elevator ride up.

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"Have you got the draft of the press release ready?" Leia asked Eri, who had been sitting at his desk furiously typing away at something when she walked in. She'd discovered that the office was just over a kilometer from the rented rooms, and took the opportunity to get some air that morning before settling in for another long day.

"Just about. Give me five more minutes."

"Great." Leia stepped into her cramped office and started up the computer, tapping her foot impatiently as the machine ground to life. It made the equipment they had at the Alliance base look positively state-of-the-art, she thought wryly.

At the conclusion of the interminable meeting the previous day, Leia had suggested that they organize a rally for Carrella's supporters that could culminate in a major announcement of a group of endorsements from environmental groups. Looking at their numbers, Leia discovered that Carrella's only path to victory required a strong showing by liberal voters, many of whom had not yet committed to vote for the two major candidates. Eri assured her that he and his fellow staff could assemble a coalition of environmental groups to formalize their endorsements by the following week, ensuring them a major splash in the local news.

"And to think this whole time we were trying to get Morrs' people on board," Eri mused as he handed Leia a copy of the draft release.

"You always have to assume that your opponent has a base of support that will never vote for you, no matter what," Leia told him, skimming the words on the sheet in front of her. "If you spend too much worrying about winning them over, you lose your own base in the process." She handed the sheet back to him. "This looks good."

"How did you learn so much about politics?" Eri wondered as he sat back down. "I don't mean to sound rude, but you can't be that old, can you?"

"Older than I look," she said with a falsetto laugh. Her alibi was ostensibly twenty seven—old enough to at least have significant campaign experience. Han had laughed when she told him the details, saying she barely appeared old enough to legally buy alcohol on a lot of planets, but she knew the past few years had aged her. Twenty seven wasn't so unbelievable. "Have you gotten the roundtable with the enviro groups scheduled?"

"We're working on it," he said. "So far we've got reps from Retacy Green and Clean Water, Clean Ecerm confirmed, and I've got calls into the others. We have to have Friends of Retacy there though- otherwise it will look like a big boondoggle."

"Do you think we'll have any problems getting them to the table?" Leia asked.

"I don't know. Heath Dolmin has always been pretty involved with them, but they're too mainstream to get behind a third party candidate."

"So we should be fine then," Leia said briskly, looking up at the chrono on the wall. "When does everyone else get in?"

"Crissy and Meelo are with Carrella today knocking on doors," Eri said. "The rest should be here soon- they don't keep the earliest hours." He looked at her with a smile. "It's nice to know that there's someone else here with a good work ethic."

"I know what you mean," Leia agreed, turning back to her computer terminal.

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By the time Han reached the forty fifth floor, he decided that he would tell Ty that he was looking for some additional freight shipping opportunities and see if he could pitch to Starncorp. At the very least, it would get him into the offices to peek around, and maybe Ty would spill some of the details of their business model.

The receptionist was a pretty dark haired woman who blushed as Han grinned widely at her. "Can I help you, sir?"

"I don't have an appointment, but I was wondering if I could have a moment with Ty Starn?"

"Let me check. Can I tell him your name?"

"Simmil. Sas Simmil."

"Of course, Mr. Simmil. Just one moment, please." She picked up a comm. "Mr. Starn? A Mr. Simmil has dropped in to see you….Yes, of course." She turned back to Han. "I'm afraid Mr. Starn is tied up on a call at the moment. But he asked that you leave your card and he'll get back in touch as soon as he's free."

Han dug his hand into his pocket, feigning a search for a business card. "I must have forgotten them. He should know how to reach me though." He winked at her as he strolled back towards the elevators. "Thanks for your help."

The elevator door opened and a man burst out, nearly running into Han as he rushed brusquely into the office lobby. "Beg your pardon," he muttered, clutching a portfolio tightly to his chest. Han turned to watch him as he approached the receptionist, holding the elevator door.

"I'm sorry, but Mr. Starn is still unavailable," he heard her say in the same cold tone that Leia used on him when she was in a hurry.

"I can wait," the man said, starting to settle himself into a chair.

"Sir, Mr. Starn will not be available today. You can make an appointment."

"I've tried. He seems to be unavailable for the next several millennia, according to his secretary." With a huff, he stood back up, stomping into the elevator. Han joined him and pressed the button for the building lobby.

"Rough day?" Han looked at the man curiously as he scribbled in a notebook.

"Nothing out of the ordinary." The man's demeanor lightened considerably as they gained distance from the Starncorp offices. He held out his hand. "Fejj Smap, Weekly Chronicle."

"Sas Simmil." Han still thought the alias sounded ridiculous as it rolled off his tongue, wondering if Leia had deliberately suggested to the Rebels that they make him sound as silly as possible. "Weekly Chronicle?"

"It's Retacy's planetwide alternative weekly," he explained proudly. "You're not from around here?"

"From Sorm," Han explained, hoping he didn't sound like too much of an illiterate bumpkin. His answered seemed to satisfy Fejj.

"Guess our little planet's issues don't much affect you all," he said.

"So who are you trying to meet with at Starncorp?" Han tried to sound casual.

"Anyone, really," Fejj explained. "I've tried to schedule a meeting with Ty Starn about twenty times in the last couple months- thought I was getting somewhere until his mom started running for the legislature. They've been clammed up ever since."

"What do you want from them?"

"We're doing a story on forest degradation in the Trelm Region. I have it on a good source that Starncorp is one of the companies involved in funding a group called Retacy Grows. They've been tied to plans to strip mine in the Trelm Region."

"Huh." Han shrugged. "Sounds like quite a story."

"I may be wrong about the whole thing though, which is why I really do want to get in and talk to someone at Starncorp. Most of the board for Retacy Grows is behind Morrs for the legislature, so it would be a bit strange if Carrella Starn's company was in bed with them."

"Too much intrigue for me," Han commented as they reached the lobby. "I just fly freight."

"Well, if you ever hear anything that you want to pass along…" Fejj handed him a card with contact information. "Get in touch anytime."

"Will do." Han pretended to stop and check his comlink as he watched Fejj scurry off down the street, then walked in the opposite direction. He weighed whether or not he should contact Leia right away to give her the tidbits Fejj had passed along about Starncorp, and then decided against it. If she found out he'd been talking to a reporter, she might find a way to kill him over the comlink.

"Hey, there, sir, got a minute for the environment?" It was another one of those damn canvassers, this one a girl, blocking his path as he headed down the sidewalk.

"No thanks," he mumbled, trying to step around her.

"It affects us all," she persisted, thrusting a clipboard at him. "Just a minute to sign a petition!"

"Look, sister," he said, pushing the clipboard away, "If the day comes when signing a petition makes a damn bit of difference to anything, I'll be right there pen in hand."

"Well, at least take a look at this," she said, handing him a brochure. Desperate to break off the conversation, he took it, shoving it into his pocket as he strode away.

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"So, good news and bad news." Eri said to Leia and Carrella, who were huddled over the day's newspaper looking at a story about a recent poll. "Friends of Retacy has tentatively agreed to come to the event, provided that we have a private meeting with them in advance."

"About what?" Carrella asked, pursing her lips.

"Environmental issues is all they said. Look, I think it's a fine idea. I've worked with them before. They're reasonable people."

"I want you there, Kesia," Carrella said, looking at Leia. "They may be reasonable but I don't trust them."

"I don't know if that's a good idea," Leia said, "Showing up with a brand new consultant this late in the game is going to look suspicious."

"You don't have to say you're my consultant," Carrella told her. "Just say you're a volunteer. I've heard you can be very convincing when necessary."

Grimacing, Leia nodded. This wasn't part of their agreement—she was supposed to stay behind the scenes. But still, she knew Carrella was right that she could be a valuable asset in the meeting. Hopefully she'd be able to stay out of the spotlight and let Carrella do the talking.


	4. Chapter 4

It was very nearly lunchtime, and given that he was striking out on finding any additional information for Leia on Starncorp, Han decided he would follow his usual tactic and head to a bar for lunch. Maybe he'd hear something worthwhile, and if not, there would at least be beer. He checked his comlink quickly to see if he'd gotten any contact from the Princess. Nothing. He decided that evening they would have a little discussion about checking in—Retacy might have a reputation for being perfectly safe, but he'd met enough interesting characters in the last day to convince him that he and Leia needed to stay on their toes.

He sauntered down a busy street, glancing inside a few spots filled with well-dressed businessmen and women before settling on a slightly more downscale option tucked into a shady alley. The afternoon was still spitting rain, and the room was humid as he walked in, heavy with the smell of grease and alcohol. His kind of place.

Sitting down at the bar, he glanced at a menu for a moment before a familiar duo caught his eye. It was the two young solicitors who had been trolling the streets with their petitions, harassing any passersby unlucky enough to make eye contact. They seemed to be taking a break from their work, huddled around a table on the far side of the bar. Han sunk down in his seat, hoping they weren't about to start making rounds in the bar.

"What can I get you there?" The bartender made her way over towards Han. He ordered an ale and sandwich, checking his comlink again before getting comfortable and listening to the chatter of the patrons around him.

"Sas?" Solo jumped, a second later than he should have. He was still getting used to the name. Turning to see who had addressed him, he spotted Fejj, the reporter who he had run into in the Starncorp lobby. He quickly pasted a smile on his face.

"Fejj—guess it's a small city, huh?"

"Smaller than you'd think," the reporter said with a grin. "Nice to run into you. I'd join you, but I've got some folks waiting for me." To Han's surprise, he gestured at the two canvassers. "For my story," he explained.

"When is this story of yours coming out?" Han asked curiously.

"Soon," Fejj told him, leaning in conspiratorially. "That's part of why I'm here. There's going to be some big….actions, you might say, that are going to push this issue to the forefront. I just found out, actually." He winked and then headed over to join his two young companions.

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"Hey."

"Is this important? I'm in the middle of something."

Sitting back in the rented room, Han fought the urge to throw the comlink in the small trash can next to the bed. "Yes, your worship, it's important."

"How important?"

"Look, can I just swing by and pick you up to chat for a couple of minutes?"

There were a few beats of silence on the other end. "Okay, but just for a few minutes. I'll meet you outside the building in ten."

She was waiting on the sidewalk as he walked up, tapping her toe and glaring impatiently. "What is so damn important?" she hissed, "We've got a huge event to plan and a meeting to prep for tomorrow."

"Something is up," Han said, pulling Leia to his side and escorting her down the sidewalk away from the main door. "I went by Starncorp HQ today."

"You did what?! I told you to check them out quietly, not go storming in."

"Calm down, your worship. I had a cover story. Me and your new boss's son, we're good buddies now."

Leia sighed loudly. "So what did you find out?"

"Not much. But apparently there is some reporter digging around for a story on them getting involved in some organization that's trying to mine…"

Leia held up a hand to stop him. "Seriously? That's why you dragged me out here? To tell me that Starncorp is involved in mining? Big deal."

"Well there are obviously some people who don't like it." When she put it that way, he did sound like he was wildly overblowing the whole thing.

"Newsflash, captain. There are always people who don't like things like that. And guess what? If Carrella didn't support some mining, we wouldn't be here. How do you think they get terrellium? It doesn't fall from the sky."

"I just have a bad feeling about it."

"Then let's get this election done with and get out of here." She pushed past him, heading back for the office.

Han watched her disappear back into the building, still resolute in his opinion that something fishy was going on. Sticking his hands in his pockets as he began to stroll away, he felt some crumpled paper and pulled it out, remembering the brochure the girl had handed him on the street corner earlier. "You can help save Retacy's natural wonders!" it said in large, friendly letters on the front, superimposed over a photo of a picturesque waterfall. Flipping it open, he found some bullets about the impact of mining and clear-cutting, with contact information and a meeting date and place at the bottom. It was scheduled for that evening. Frowning, he shoved the paper back in his pocket. He shouldn't go showing up at random meetings….but at the same time, if they were planning something that involved Starncorp, Leia might end up right in the middle. Maybe he should go after all…..

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"This is preposterous!" Carrella whispered to Leia as they sat at a conference table, Eri taking notes on the other side. She nodded silently, carefully observing the attendees on the other side of the table. Three of them had been introduced as staff and officers of Friends of Retacy, and surprised Leia by being relatively professionally dressed. Carrella gave a tight lipped smile as the final man stood to shake her hand.

"Heath," she said flatly, giving him a limp handshake. "I'm surprised to see you here."

"I'm glad to have made it." He was younger than Carrella, his head shaved bald to disguise a prematurely receding hairline. He grinned at Eri, who awkwardly returned his friendly fist bump, glancing sideways at his boss as she sat stone faced.

"Heath is also running for the seat in the legislature," Carrella said to Leia, trying not to show too much disgust. "On a third party ticket."

"I'm sorry, I didn't catch your name, my dear," Heath said, turning to Leia.

"Kesia," she replied. "I'm a volunteer for Ms. Starn's campaign."

"Well, welcome, Kesia." So this was Heath Dolmin. Leia had seen his name popping up in a few news stories and in the poll reports, mostly pulling a few percentage points away from Carrella on the more liberal fringe. She hadn't actually expected to meet him, but his demeanor didn't surprise her in the slightest. Pushy, holier-than-thou, and now he was going to try to make this meeting all about him. She hoped Carrella caught that too, before the whole thing became a monumental waste of time.

"So I was hoping to talk to you today about the forest acquisition plans in…" Heath started, but Carrella held up a hand, much to Leia's relief.

"Heath, I'm sorry, but I promised some time to the Friends here, and I'd hate to sidetrack that. I know they're very busy."

Not easily sidetracked, Heath kept going. "I'm actually here today in my capacity as a member of the Friends of Retacy." Leia gave Eri a sideways look, and he reddened under her gaze—he must have failed to confirm the attendee list. "Have you seen the recent population numbers for the duural birds in Trelm? The specs that Starncorp just got approved by the planning department would take out an additional fifty percent of their habitat."

"Heath," Carrella responded with a practiced smile. "First, I'm not involved in day to day operations of the company right now. Second, you just said yourself that it was approved by the planning department. I've always been committed to following the law to the letter. If we need to make changes to environmental regulations, the time for that is after my election."

Leia gritted her teeth, noticing that Carrella was starting to get testy. This meeting could get bad quickly if she didn't get it back on track.

"And furthermore," Carrella continued. Enough. Leia jumped in.

"Furthermore, additional regulation is actually part of why Ms. Starn wanted to speak with you today," she said, placing a hand on Carrella's wrist and squeezing gently, hoping the message to shut up came across clearly. "She is preparing to announce a major proposal to overhaul existing environmental regulations to create greater accountability and transparency, and she was hoping that Friends of Retacy would be a partner in developing the specifics."

Finally Fennan, the man who had been introduced as the board president of the Friends of Retacy perked up. "That would be a welcome project. We would be very interested in hearing more details."

Eri handed out some sheets of flimsi with their rough outline of the proposal. Leia had spent hours reviewing it the night before, wishing they had someone on staff with a better grasp of local legislative procedure. In the end, they'd had to leave out some details, but Leia proposed turning the lack of specifics to their advantage by using the holes in their plan as a vehicle for soliciting advice from the environmental groups. So far, it seemed like it was working well with the Friends.

"You truly don't expect this to actually pass the legislature?" Heath said dismissively, looking down at the outline. "Eri, I'd expect better from you."

"My staff have been working hard on this," Carrella said icily.

"Compromise is important," added Fennan. "Better to get some of what we want than nothing."

"We can't just sit around waiting for tidbits to be thrown our way," Heath argued. "The time has come for real change."

Leia kept her mouth shut, the conversation reminding her in a bittersweet way of the arguments she used to have with her own father before she'd committed body and soul to the Alliance. Ironic that she was now sitting on the side of compromise, but, she reminded herself, this wasn't about Retacy. It was about beating the Empire.

"We'll review it with our executive board and get back to you," Fennan said finally. "I appreciate you taking the time to meet. We just want to be sure that a candidate shares our values before we throw our support behind her."

"I completely understand," Carrella responded, more relaxed now that Heath had been knocked down a peg. "Let me walk you out."

Leia and Eri both stood as their guests left, Heath trailing behind as Carrella chatted with Fennan and his companions. Picking up a pile of papers, Eri excused himself, leaving Leia alone behind the conference table. She wasn't terribly surprised when Heath wheeled back to come talk to her.

"So how did you come to be in Starncorp's employ, Kesia?" he asked, leaning casually against the wall in the back of the room.

"I don't work for Starncorp." Leia kept her tone even. "I'm volunteering for the campaign."

"You sure have worked your way up in the hierarchy for a volunteer," he noted. "Usually Carrella only brings Eri with her."

"You've been to a lot of meetings with her, then?" Leia queried, hoping to get the focus off her.

"Me or my people," he said, giving her a wink. She looked at him sternly.

"Not sure what you mean by that, Mr. Dolmin."

"What I mean by that, Kesia, is that I'm not just some bumpkin in tie-dye trying to commune with the trees," he said, leaning in closer to her. "I know what your boss is up to, and I intend to stop her."

"Do tell." Leia crossed her arms, refusing to step back. She was accustomed to taller men trying to intimidate her, and it very rarely worked.

"I'm sure you'll read about it in the papers soon enough." He smiled and pretended to tip a cap at her. "So long, Kesia. I'm sure we'll cross paths again."

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"Do you have any idea what time it is?"

Han was sitting in Leia's room, feet stretched out on her desk next to a congealed plate of some sort of casserole.

"I didn't realize you had lost your chrono," Leia snapped, pushing past him to drop her bag on a chair. "What is that?"

"It was your dinner."

"I ate already." She wrinkled her nose, pushing the plate over into the trash.

"You didn't answer my question."

"I didn't realize I had a curfew, captain." Leia pulled her shoes off, rubbing her feet as she flopped down onto the bed.

"I was worried about you, that's all," he responded defensively. "It was a long day."

"Yes it was." She softened her tone. "I forgot how the petty little things can blow so far out of proportion….in a campaign," she added hastily.

"Like what?"

"It's these environmental groups. I guess there's a whole issue around what Carrella's company is planning for this forested region. It's all been approved by the planetary bureaucracy though, so now it's just in fighting about this habitat and that habitat…"

Han chuckled. "You must be tired. That doesn't sound like the princess I know. I thought you lived for that kind of stuff."

She threw a pillow at him half-heartedly. "It's just so silly. They're fighting over this little scrap of land like they have no idea that the Emperor is lurking out there capable of blowing their whole planet to slag if someone looks at him funny." She yawned. "But it could be worse. I guess I'm glad there are still planets out there that can worry about things like bird habitats…"

"Hey." He wasn't going to let her start spiraling back into a depressive funk. "How do you think everyone is doing on Hoth? You think Luke and Chewie have frozen their b…" Leia stopped him with a harder smack from a pillow, trying not to giggle.

"Okay, hotshot, go away. I have work to do."

"It's 0200 hours, Leia. Go to bed."

"I'm okay." She walked over to the tiny coffee station near the bathroom and started brewing a pot. "Oh, Han? You forgot to give me my keycard."

"This?" He held it up over her head. "I thought I should hang onto it, so I know when you come and go. Or so I can come in and make sure you're sleeping."

"You wouldn't dare!" Leia leapt up, trying to swipe it out of his hand as he lifted the card out of range. "Give it here."

"What's the magic word?" he teased, placing his free hand on her head and laughing as she struggled to catch his wrist.

"Hm…." Leia said. "How about this?" She whipped out her holdout blaster and held it under his nose.

"Sheesh, here." He handed her the card. "Watch where you point that thing."

"Thanks," she said, pocketing the key card with a smile. "'Night."

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Slipping into his nightclothes, Han realized he still hadn't filled Leia in on the conversations with the reporter. Maybe she was right though- maybe it was all just petty machinations and in-fighting. So far there hadn't been any indication that anyone was in physical danger. Leaning back, he decided for the moment it would be best to leave well enough alone.

He laid down on the bed and turned out the lights, reminding himself to enjoy the spacious room and comfortable mattress while he had it. Idly he wondered what Carrella must be paying for this space: it wasn't luxurious, but it certainly wasn't cheap either. Seemed like she was getting her money's worth and more out of Leia though.

Through the wall, he could hear the rustling noises of Leia flipping through papers. After a while the sounds quieted, and he hoped that meant she had fallen asleep. The chrono read 0345- just a couple of hours until sunrise. Stretching out, Han rolled over and went to sleep.

"Hey! Who's there?!"

Han shot up, hearing the muffled sound of Leia's voice calling out into the hallway. He grabbed his blaster out from under his pillow and poked his head out the front door of his room. Leia was looking out her own door a few feet away, clutching a piece of paper.

He carefully closed his own door and stepped beside her. "What happened?"

"There was someone at the door," she said, handing him the paper. He noticed she was still in her clothes from the night before, and there was a dark smear of ink down her cheek. "They left that."

Han glanced at the paper, recognizing the picture of the waterfall immediately. "There are some kids downtown handing these out on the street."

"Who are they?" Leia pulled him inside the room and shut the door.

"Some environmental group. I haven't been able to find out much more. They seemed harmless, just asked me to sign a petition."

"Why would they come here? No one is supposed to know that I'm staying here."

"Could someone have followed you?" Han asked, walking quickly over to the window and drawing the curtains.

"I suppose it's possible. The guy we met with yesterday, Heath, he seemed to know an awful lot about Carrella."

Han frowned. "I don't like this."

Leia sat back down, taking the brochure back from him. "Maybe I'm making a bigger deal than necessary out of it. Maybe it's just some idealistic young enviro trying to save the world."

"But they took off when you opened the door?"

"Yeah," Leia admitted. "The sound of the paper sliding under woke me up, and by the time I got to the door they were gone."

"At least you were sleeping," Han commented, looking down quizzically at the neatly made bed. "Right?" Then he noticed the rumpled papers on the desk and recognized the color of the ink on Leia's face. "You know, there are more comfortable spots to rest than on a desk."

"Thanks for the tip," she muttered, walking into the bathroom and grabbing a washcloth. "So what do we do about this?"

"I don't think they've made any connection between you and me yet," Han told her. "There's some meeting scheduled for tonight- I'll go and see what I can scope out. But no more walking home alone, okay? Get someone to give you a ride, or call me."

Leia nodded slightly.

"What was that, your highnessness? I couldn't hear you."

"Yes, Han. I will get a ride or call you," she said statically.

"Good."

"Now get out of here. I need to get ready. I've got another long day coming up."


	5. Chapter 5

"Another day, another million credits," Eri sang brightly as Leia let herself into the office.

"I hope that's not how much we're spending on this space," she replied, trying to stifle a yawn as she reached for the coffee maker.

"I wouldn't drink that." Eri reached out to take the pot from her. "It's been sitting since last night. Let me brew some fresh." He busied himself at the small sink while Leia started pulling papers out of her bag.

"I'm glad you're here before Carrella arrives, actually," Leia said. "Something a little odd happened this morning, and I wanted to see if you had any insight."

"What's that?" Eri asked, not turning around.

"Someone slipped this under the door of the room where I'm staying," she said, pulling out the brochure. "My…well, I heard they're being handed out on the street."

He turned to look at the paper in her hand. "Yeah, one of those groups that bugs people on the street corners. I've seen them too. I usually just tell them I have a highly contagious virus, or that I don't speak Basic, and keep walking. Works every time."

"But how did they know where I was staying? And that I'm working for Carrella?"

"Maybe they gave everyone at the hotel one?" he shrugged.

Leia began to argue and thought better of it. Eri had no idea that Han was on the planet with her, and she didn't know Eri well enough to reveal his presence for so minor an incident. "Could be," she said finally.

"I wouldn't worry about them," he continued. "Those guys, they're total fringe. A bunch of them got arrested last year for camping in a city park and then chaining themselves to a tree when the cops showed up. They just do it to annoy their parents, that's what I think."

"Okay," Leia conceded. "But is there any chance that they'll throw a wrench in our plans for the endorsement event?"

"I don't think so. I'm supposed to get a call from someone from the Friends of Retacy today. I think this is actually going to work really well."

Leia smiled. "I guess we better to get to work then."

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"Hi!" A girl who barely looked old enough to be out on her own past sunset wearing a faded green t-shirt and hiking boots greeted Han brightly as he entered the dilapidated lobby. He looked down at the sheet in his hand, checking the address one more time, before giving the girl an appraising look. "You here for the meeting?"

"Guess so," Han said, glancing around the room. Old promotional posters for tourist attractions on Retacy and nearby Sorm covered cracks in the wall, and he wondered whether they were in a region susceptible to quakes. This building wouldn't stand up to much.

"Sign in here!" She handed him a clipboard and pen, watching him carefully as he slowly scrawled out a name on the sheet. It took him a second to think of another alias, but at least for the next couple of hours he wouldn't have to go by the ridiculous moniker the Alliance had assigned him.

"Welcome, Del." She pointed down the hall to a closed door. "In there. We'll start in a couple of minutes."

He slipped into the back of the room, which was already three quarters full. It was mostly young people filling the motley assortment of chairs, but he saw a couple of grey heads as well. At the front of the room, next to an old fashioned free-standing chalkboard, two men stood whispering, glancing up as he took his seat.

Finally one of them clapped their hands, calling the room to attention.

"Everyone, thank you so much for coming!" the younger of the two men said. "Can you hear me in the back?" He looked straight at Han, who nodded. "Great."

"So for those of you who don't know, my name is Gram Hinmar, and I'm the founder of Our Retacy. I formed this organization because I felt like we needed a major change in the politics around preserving our planet's natural resources. For too long, our elected officials have compromised with corporations interested in nothing more than stripping our home down to bare rock, just to make a profit. If we fail to act now, the Retacy of our youth will be gone forever."

One of the older women stood up clapping, only to be pulled back down by a red-faced young man Han took to be her son.

"Thank you. Now, the reason we are here tonight is because we have a unique opportunity to launch our concerns into the spotlight. As many of you know, the Weekly Chronicle has been doing an in-depth investigation of the group that calls themselves Retacy Grows…" Here he paused as some of the audience members hissed. "Which we know is actually a front group for several of the major mining corporations that want unlimited access to land in the Trelm Region. Unfortunately our political system is so corrupt that not just one but two of the candidates running for the current open legislative seat have direct connections to Retacy Grows." The audience hissed and booed again as Han leaned forward, perking up his ears. "One of these candidates is at least honest about his utter contempt for the environment, but the other has been engaged in an unprecedented campaign of greenwashing that the historical advocacy groups have fallen for hook, line, and sinker."

One of the men seated at the front of the room who was scribbling furiously in a notebook turned around to observe the rest of the audience as Gram took a quick sip of water. Han leaned back into the shadows, recognizing Fejj, the reporter from the Weekly Chronicle. It was too little too late—Fejj grinned widely at Han and gave him a wave.

"We've learned that three major environmental advocacy groups are planning to endorse Carrella Starn at an event in just a few days," Gram continued. "While our contacts work on convincing the respective boards to pull the endorsements, our job is to organize an action that will raise awareness of the hypocrisy of those groups and of Starn herself if the event moves forward." Han frowned. "I must warn you, we are planning a civil disobedience. If you have any concerns about arrest, I recommend you head out now." A couple of people stood and walked out, one of them muttering about how his mother threatened to take away his speeder if he was arrested again. "Okay, then. Here's the plan."

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After the incident with the brochure delivery, Han decided that taking a direct route back to the rented room would be a poor strategy. He also didn't want to hang around and chat though, especially given Fejj's presence, so he took the only route he could think of and slipped into the dingy 'fresher room, locking himself into a stall. The inside of the door was covered in graffiti, more political than crude, and he amused himself for a moment reviewing the earnest poetry someone had scratched in above the handle .

"Good turnout tonight." Kriff. Of course Fejj and Gram would walk in. Han held his breath, hoping their visit would be quick. The smell was starting to get to him.

"I was surprised, actually," Gram responded. "I didn't think we'd get so many new faces."

"I met that guy that was in the back the other day," Fejj continued. "I didn't think he was interested. This will give you a laugh—he's a shipper that's done work for Starncorp."

"You don't think he was a spy?" Gram said, sounding suspicious.

"Nah. When I went up to try to interview Ty they wouldn't let him in either."

"Okay. Well, keep an eye open anyways. What was his name?"

"Sas, I think."

Han heard papers shuffling. "Huh. No Sas on here."

"Let me look. Well, maybe he doesn't want his boss finding out he was here."

"I hope that's all. It'd be nice if we could knock Starn out once and for all with this. She's such a.." and even Han's mouth dropped at the curse.

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He counted to a thousand after the two men left, grateful to see the lobby deserted as he pushed through the glass doors into the foggy evening. The streets were quiet, most of the shops and restaurants closing as the office workers made their way home. Checking over his shoulder several times and then walking as circuitous a route as he could maintain without getting hopelessly lost, he made his way back to the room.

He was surprised when Leia answered his quick knock on the internal door separating their two rooms.

"You're back early," he commented, stepping into her space before she had a chance to deny him entry. "It's only 2100."

"Decided to work from here tonight," she told him, gesturing to the pile of papers spread across the bed.

"And how did you get back?"

"Carrella gave me a ride," she reported, her lips tight with annoyance.

"Good." He sat down on the edge of the bed, careful not to disrupt her piles. "So I went that meeting tonight."

"Any indication of who was here?"

"No," he admitted. "But they're organizing a big protest at your event. They're pissed that the enviro groups are endorsing Carrella Starn and they want to make a splash."

Leia seemed less concerned than Han would have expected. "What kind of splash?"

"I wasn't privy to that," he said, "There's a few of them that are going to do something to disrupt the event, and then they want a bunch of us to surround the attendees with banners."

"And you don't know what they're going to do?" Her eyes narrowed.

"I don't think it's anything violent, but no, I don't know."

"Kriff." Leia moved to pick up her comlink. "This could ruin the whole point of the event."

"Wait." Han reached out to grab her arm. "Who are you calling?"

"Carrella and Eri. We need to figure out what to do."

"Princess, let's talk about this first. The organizer guy, Gram, he seemed like maybe he was onto me. I don't want to put any fuel on that fire until we figure out what's really going on here."

"What's really going on here," Leia said testily, "Is that some third-party fringe group wants to ruin the election for the viable candidate that most closely aligns with their values. That's why no one likes third parties, Han—they always end up shooting themselves, and everyone else, in the foot."

"That's not exactly fair." Han was surprised at her vehemence. "These guys seem to have a legitimate beef that no one is paying attention to."

"That may be, but that isn't my problem, Han." Leia ran her fingers through the blonde curls on her head. "If Carrella doesn't, the legislature is going to permanently lock down the terrellium supply on Retacy. And then our engineers on Hoth will be back at square one trying to make the ion cannon work. That is my problem. And your problem too, if you'll recall."

"How about a compromise?" He fought hard against the instinct to argue, knowing that she was in a mood to keep a fight going for hours. "Can we figure out a way to let them have their protest without causing Carrella any unnecessary problems?"

"I suppose we could quietly move the event at the last minute," she said thoughtfully. "Let them go to the original location but make sure the press is with us."

"Just make sure you don't tell the Weekly Chronicle," Han warned her. "They're in bed with this group."

"I see." Leia raised her eyebrows. "How do you know that?"

"I, uh, well, I got to chatting with this guy Fejj, and it turns out he's one of their reporters."

"Han!" Her voice went up an octave. "You were talking to the press? What were you thinking?"

"I was not talking to the press, your high holy bossiness," he responded grumpily. "I was talking to a guy who happened to be a reporter."

"Does he know you were at the meeting?" Han just paused. "Kriff, Han! What if he sees us together?"

"Don't worry, your worship," Han said, coming up behind her to massage her shoulders. "He does think I'm sneaking around, but he thinks I'm hiding from an employer, not from them."

She let him work the kinks in her neck for a moment before shrugging him off. "Okay, hotshot. Well, you be careful. I don't want to see a news report about how Carrella Starn is sending spies to opposition group meetings."

"Isn't that technically what happened though?"

"Shut up."

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"Okay, Eri, you're on calling the reporters on the list and letting them know about the change. Meelo, would you send a message to the police and make sure they still have our security info on file. Crissy, you reconfirm the arrangements for the ballroom at the Lindor Building." Leia looked at her notes. "Carrella and I are going to work on her speech."

Carrella smiled at her staff. "This is going to be a wonderful event, thanks to Kesia and all of you. I'm so excited for tonight. Let's get to work."

In a compromise with Han, Leia had waited until morning to tell Eri and Carrella that she'd heard rumors of a major protest planned for their original event. Eri gave her a suspicious look, but Carrella simply nodded knowingly, figuring that the companion her Alliance consultant had arrived with must have been the source of the information. Carrella was nervous about letting the protest go forward at the original venue, but accepted Leia's reasoning after a long, slightly heated discussion.

"You're an excellent speechwriter," Carrella said as they sat down in her office. "Don't tell Eri I said this, but some of his work was a bit amateurish. You must have a lot of experience with public speaking."

Leia just smiled. She actually had found it a little challenging to write for someone else after so many years. Her father used to let her draft some of his speeches as practice for her own political career when she was a teenager, but since her own election and rise to leadership in the Alliance she had grown accustomed to speaking for herself. She'd been up much of the previous night putting finishing touches on her work.

"If you don't mind my asking, how did you get so good at all this?" Carrella continued. She lowered her voice. "We're fairly isolated on this little planet, but my company has still been in some decline since the transition of the galaxy to Imperial rule. I was glad to be able to find something I could do to be helpful in the war effort without drawing unwanted attention, but I was surprised that your compatriots made the offer that they did."

Leia wasn't about to give up any tidbits about her true identity, but Carrella's comments intrigued her. "What do you mean? What had you expected them to offer?"

"Well," Carrella whispered, leaning into Leia's ear, "Starncorp has holdings that include prospective terrellium mines. I suggested that the Alliance help fund the planned exploration in return for access to some of the materials. They were ready to sign off on it, and then this issue of freezing the supply arose in the legislature. I guess the thought of having to smuggle it off-planet spooked them?" Leia just shrugged. She hadn't heard the full details of that background, though she assumed that Rieekan had refused to approve the proposed trade once he heard that there might be popular opposition on the unaligned planet.

"I guess this is just the more honest way of getting what we need," Leia said with a smile. "Now, let's focus on getting this speech perfect. It's going to be a big night."

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"Crissy, it looks perfect!" Leia gushed, patting the beaming young woman on the shoulder as she stood in the rear of the ballroom. The girl had really outdone herself, artfully arranging "Starn works for YOU!" banners over the dais and a sea of neatly arranged chairs waiting for the audience. She'd even made little table tents indicating the spot for each of the various press outlets they were expecting, setting out copies of the legislative proposal and Carrella's other campaign literature for them to reference in their news reports. "Just an hour til showtime!"

The representatives from the various environmental groups began trickling in a few minutes later, carrying piles of press releases announcing their endorsements. Eri was there to show each of them up to a seat behind the podium, going over last minute logistics. They had decided that the president of Friends of Retacy would speak right before the candidate, introducing Carrella with a gushing description of her commitment to the environment. Not one to leave things to chance, Leia had Eri talk each of the groups into sending over their draft remarks early so she could make sure nothing was amiss.

Settling herself in the back row, Leia watched as news crews started setting up their equipment around the room. A couple of them tried to engage her in conversation, but she played shy, insisting she was just a volunteer and sending them to Eri. One of them gave her a long look, enough to make her start worrying uncomfortably that she might have been recognized.

"You seem so familiar," the woman said as she applied another layer of thick magenta lipstick.

"I'm sorry, I don't know that I can place you," Leia mumbled, willing her to go away.

"Weren't you at Ecerm High School? Junior varsity cheerleading squad?"

Relieved, Leia shook her head. "Huh. Well, it was someone who looked just like you." The reporter wandered off.

Eri had requested that each of the represented environmental groups bring along some of their membership to fill in the audience, and Leia was gratified to see that they were getting a good turnout. She reminded Eri twice to diplomatically suggest to the Friends that inviting Heath would be counterproductive, and so far it looked they were safe. The last thing they needed was for someone to make a scene.

The lights dimmed as an older woman, president of Retacy Green, stepped up to the podium to start the event. Leia leaned back, closing her eyes for just a moment. They were actually going to pull this off, she thought proudly.

She glanced over her back, making sure that Han hadn't tried to sneak in behind her. They'd had a long fight that morning before she left for the office about whether or not he should attend, and while he'd grudgingly agreed that he couldn't risk being seen at the event, she didn't trust him not to come up with some excuse to show up at the last minute. But the room had filled, some of the last minute attendees pressed up against the back wall, and Han was nowhere in sight. Perfect, Leia thought, as she noticed more than one news camera sweeping the crowded space for background footage.

Now Fennan was speaking, describing his organization's interests and their commitment to getting Carrella elected. Leia had been over Carrella's speech ad nauseum with her, and knew she was going to be perfect. She smiled up at the woman sitting on the dais as Fennan concluded his introduction.

"And now I'm thrilled and privileged to introduce a great leader and friend of mine, our next representative, Carrella Starn!" Applause and cheers broke out as Carrella stood, embracing Fennan before waving beatifically to the crowd assembled in front of her.

Suddenly a noise rang across the sound system, staccato bangs followed by a massive crashing. Leia jumped out of her seat, feeling for her blaster. As the sound grew louder, the audience members looked around in alarm. Abruptly the rumbling was replaced by birdsong, which was then muffled by the sounds of saws and more crashing. Carrella stood at the podium, the smile still pasted on her face but her eyes flashing murder.

Turning, Leia saw that some of the audience members clustered around the edge of the room were stepping forward to unfurl enormous banners painted with pictures and slogans. She slipped out of her row and stepped up to one young man holding a sign, pulling it from his hands.

"What the hell do you think you're doing?" she barked at him, taking a closer look at the sign as a few of the protestors began rushing the stage. Eri stepped briskly up to Carrella, talking into his comlink, and stood between her and the news cameras as the murmurs in the audience became a roar of arguments and shouting.

"Everybody sit!" Four police officers burst in through the back doors, blasters drawn. There were a few shrieks as most of the audience members scrambled back to their chairs. The protestors stoically remained standing though, holding their banners high to give the news cameras a better view. The man Leia had taken the sign from reached out to try to snatch it back from her as more officers poured into the room, beginning to drag the protestors out.

Kriff, Leia thought, glancing over at the reporters who were buzzing excitedly about the raw footage. How did they find us? She looked around wildly, wondering if she could gain a clue from one of the faces of the activists ringing the room, when suddenly she felt her arms pulled roughly behind her and clasped in thin metal binders.

"Hey!" she said, trying to whirl around to get a glimpse of the police officer. He pushed between her shoulder blades, forcing her towards the door. "I'm not with them."

"Right," he responded sarcastically, waving the sign he had taken away from her. "Tell it to a judge, missy."

She turned again, trying to see if she could get Carrella's attention, but the room was in chaos. "I'm on Carrella Starn's staff!" she pleaded as she was led outside.

He looked at her skeptically as he shoved into a group of similarly cuffed protestors guarded by a ring of officers. "We've got a list of her staff with pictures and you're not on it, honey. Nice try." He stalked back into the room as another officer ordered them to their knees. For a brief moment, Leia's heart froze. Were they going to be shot? Then she saw the officers start escorting the prisoners one by one to waiting speeders, and she breathed again. She just hoped she could get out of this before Han found out. He'd never let her hear the end of it.


	6. Chapter 6

Leia wiggled her shoulders, trying to get into a more comfortable position in the cramped jail cell. She was stuffed inside with eight other women, all of whom seemed to know each other and who were apparently unconcerned about the fact that they were stuck in a damp, mildewy room with their hands bound behind their back with barely enough room to turn around.

"You're not familiar, honey." An older woman with long grey braids looked down at Leia. "When did you join up?"

"I'm afraid this was a case of mistaken identity," Leia said, trying not to sound too grumpy.

"Well, live and learn. We'll be out of here soon, and you'll have quite the tale to tell, won't you?"

"Sure." Leia took a long, shuddering breath and leaned back against the smooth concrete wall. She was not going to let herself panic. The woman was right—the police were just trying to make a point, and Carrella and Eri would notice she was missing soon enough and put two and two together. She hoped. It wasn't that she really feared being harmed in here…more that the idea of being locked up sent chills down her spine.

"Oh, don't get upset, my dear." The woman mistook Leia's exhausted sigh for impending tears. "Really. We'll pass the time, won't we, girls?" The other women in the cell cheerily nodded their assent. "Maybe by the time we're done you'll be ready to come along with us for the next action."

Deciding to make the best of the situation, Leia stood up straighter. "So what brought you all to that rally today?"

"We wanted to bring awareness to the planned destruction in the Trelm region," a girl spoke up, sounding as though she were reciting from memory. "Entire habitats are at risk from corporations like Starncorp."

"But isn't Morrs worse?" Leia prodded, wondering what exactly Starncorp was up to that upset these people so much.

"Well, yes," the girl admitted, "But at least he's honest about his contempt for the environment. People like Carrella Starn weasel their way in and ingratiate themselves with groups like Friends of Retacy that should know better, and then you can never get rid of them."

"Hm." Leia smiled tightly, remembering her father lecturing her about not letting the perfect be the enemy of the good. When had she turned into such a pragmatist, she wondered. "But don't you think it's better that those groups have a seat at the table, rather than always trying to fight the system from the outside?"

"Our democracy is too far gone!" another woman stated passionately.

"How can you say that? You're having a free and open election right now!" Leia was starting to get annoyed with their willful dismissal of any logic. "Part of democracy is compromise. You can't just say the system is rigged every time things don't go your way. There are places in the galaxy where you would have been executed on the spot for what you all just did!" She stopped, wondering if she had gone too far.

The older woman who had started the conversation with Leia smiled. "You're right, my dear. It's all a matter of perspective. But that's why we came to a rally holding banners instead of doing something drastic."

"You're right." Leia let out a breath and changed the subject. "So how long have you all been doing stuff like this?"

The woman laughed. "Since before I was old enough to. My mother used to do sit-ins at the university, and once I was old enough to call my father because she'd been arrested, she let me come with her."

"All right, ladies!" A voice rang out, and they turned to see two police officers coming with a large set of keys. "You know the drill, one at a time, we need name and ID, we'll run a check and then you're free to go."

"Why don't you go first, my dear?" Leia nodded gratefully and scooted towards the cell door, turning so that the officer could undo her cuffs.

"Name?"

"Kesia Harwano."

"You have your ID on you, Miss Harwano?"

"I'm afraid my bag got left back at the rally," Leia explained. The officer chuckled.

"This must be your first time doing one of these. You're supposed to keep it in your pocket, right, ladies?" The women in the cell all nodded, smiling.

"Be nice to her, Officer Warl," one of the women called out, "She says she got picked up by mistake."

"That true?" Warl said to Leia, giving her a stern look.

"It is," Leia said.

"What were you doing there, then?"

"I was attending the rally. I just stood up at the wrong time, I guess."

He gave her another long look, then pulled the second officer over to him. "Run her background quick." Leia took a deep breath, hoping the Alliance had done a decent job establishing Kesia Harwano as a real person, preferably without a criminal record. "Go ahead and sit down, miss. We'll be with you in a moment."

Settling down on the bench next to the officer, Leia looked around the bank of cells. Next to the room where the protestors had been confined, she could see the one other cell. A woman with a black eye muttered to herself as she leaned over a small sink in the corner. As the woman stumbled towards the door, Leia caught a sour whiff of alcohol, suddenly grateful that she had been crammed in with the other women from the rally, even if it had been a bit tight.

"Miss Harwano?" The second officer had returned. "I'm going to need you to come with me."

Leia's stomach dropped. Her false identification must have raised a red flag. "Is something wrong?" she asked quietly.

"We don't have any records on a Kesia Harwano," he replied, confirming her suspicion. She bit her lip. The advance team was supposed to establish her identity in the planetary records, but they must have skipped some steps when they decided to make Kesia a native of Sorm instead of Retacy. Kriff.

"I don't get to Retacy much," she said lamely, following him down the hallway towards a small office. "I'm visiting from Sorm."

"That could be the issue," the officer responded, sounding friendly enough. Maybe there was still an easy way out of this. He gestured her into an office and then, to Leia's dismay, left her alone, locking the door behind him.

Her heart pounded as she forced herself to stay sitting with a half smile on her face, trying to survey the room without being obvious about it. Two cameras were pointed at the chair, and another above the door monitored the rest of the room. The walls were cinder block and windowless. She shifted slightly, finding that both the bare table and chair were bolted to the floor. Not that she was planning to do anything drastic—Carrella Starn was going to have a hard enough time dealing with the fallout from the protest at her event. Having a staffer escape from police custody would be the last nail in her campaign's coffin.

The door swung open and Leia turned around, wondering if a vigorous protest of her detention would have better results than the last time she tried that strategy. As it turned out, the same officer came back in bursting with apologies before she could even speak.

"I'm so terribly sorry about this mix up, Miss Harwano. Please come with me and we'll get this all sorted out. I hope you'll accept our apologies on behalf of the department."

As they rounded a corner, Leia saw the reason for the officer's change of heart. Carrella Starn stood in the center of the lobby, eyes blazing as she lectured a tall man wearing captain's insigna, who withered under her verbal assault.

"Kesia, my god, my dear, are you all right?" Carrella strode over to Leia's side, pulling her close as the guard scurried away back down the hall. Leaning in towards her ear, she added with a hiss, "What the hell do you think you were doing?" Then she pushed Leia back, holding her at arms' length and looking her up and down. "You're not hurt, are you?"

"I assure you, she has not been mistreated in any way," the captain stammered, looking pleadingly at Leia. Suddenly feeling very sorry for the man, Leia nodded in agreement. "It was all a mistake: we'll have it all cleared from the record immediately."

"Good," said Carrella sharply. Then she turned back to Leia. "I have someone to escort you out the back. There's been quite a bit of…press interest in this turn of events."

"Oh, Carrella, I'm sorry," Leia said. "How did they find out where we moved the rally?"

"I'm working on finding out." Her voice was even, but the woman's eyes narrowed. "The good news is that we still have the endorsements. Those idiots once again managed to hurt their own cause."

"I'll meet you back at the campaign office," Leia said, looking around for Eri's unmistakable flame red hair. "Where's Eri then?"

"Eri stayed behind at the event to deal with reporters."

"I thought you said someone was going to take me out the back?"

"Whenever you're ready to go, your…..Kesia."

Leia looked beyond Carrella with dismay to see Han Solo walking over, escorted by yet another officer. He was smiling tightly but he was glaring daggers at both Leia and Carrella. Gritting her teeth, Leia silently followed him and the officer through another narrow hallway into a parking area that was blissfully free of reporters. He gestured to a speeder and opened the door for her, giving the officer a wave as they pulled out onto the street.

"Where did you get the speeder?" Leia asked quietly.

"What the hell, princess?"

"What is that supposed to mean?" she snapped angrily. "None of that was my fault."

"Rieekan told me I'm supposed to watch out for you and you're making it damn hard, that's what I mean." He turned a little too sharply around a corner and she banged her shoulder into the speeder door.

"That's because there's nothing to watch out for, captain," Leia seethed.

"You call getting arrested nothing?"

"Yes, I do. This isn't the Empire. They were going to let me go. You coming in shooting would have been the worst possible outcome."

Han turned abruptly somber. "They weren't going to let you go. At least not until Carrella got there."

"What do you mean?" Leia asked suspiciously.

"The Alliance guys must have screwed something up. They didn't have any records of your identity. They were going to run a biometric search. That was when Carrella threw a fit and made them let you out."

"Oh." Leia was quiet for a moment. Retacy may not have Imperial presence, but they still had enough interstellar trade to warrant access to galaxy-wide biometric databases, many of which had specs on both Leia and several of her aliases that had been abandoned because of implication in various actions against the Empire. "That would have been bad."

"Yeah." He turned again, more carefully this time.

"This isn't the way back to the office, Han."

"I'm aware of that, Princess. Carrella wants you to lay low for a few hours, and I'm inclined to agree with her. You've been working too much."

"So where are you taking me? Against my will, if I might add."

"I don't know about you, but I'm hungry." She squirmed and swatted his hand away as he poked her in the ribs. "You could use a good meal or three."

"Fine. But you're paying."

"No, Carrella is," Han responded with a grin, flashing a wad of credits.

After a few more minutes of twists and turns, Han pulled up outside a non-descript wooden building with a small parking area out front. He hopped out, racing around to open Leia's door with an exaggerated bow. "Milady." She just rolled her eyes and led him into the restaurant.

She was grateful that it was dimly lit, assuming that her hair and makeup would be a mess after the ordeal at the jail. A waiter led them to a tall backed booth, and Leia excused herself to wash her hands and visit the 'fresher as Han ordered drinks.

Han watched her disappear around a corner, looking around the room carefully before focusing on the menu that had been placed in front of him. He was still irritated that Leia hadn't even deigned to thank him for busting her out of jail. It was lucky for her that he'd lingered at a bar with a holoprojector that was showing the evening news. A camera had zeroed in on her face as a cop dragged her out of the rally, the reporter breathlessly relating the sabotage that had befallen the event. She had looked simultaneously terrified and pissed, and his first instinct had indeed been to burst into the police station with guns blazing. Her practicality must have rubbed off though, as he instead opted to head for the scene of the event and track down Carrella.

He looked up as she headed back from the 'fresher, making a beeline for their booth, and then frowned as he saw someone stand and follow her. His fingers went to his blaster as he stood, pushing Leia onto the bench and positioning himself between her and her pursuer.

She was startled when Han grabbed her arm and shoved her behind him, but palmed her own blaster and whirled around to see the threat. She kept it hidden in her hand as she recognized the man who had followed her.

"Heath Dolmin," she said calmly. "Fancy running into you."

"Kesia, right?" He smiled broadly at Han, who was still standing between him and Leia. "And you are…"

"My uncle," Leia said quickly, just as Han said, "Her husband." Heath raised his eyebrows.

"You look familiar. Del, is it?" Heath stepped neatly over to the other side of the booth, sliding in across from Leia. "May I join you?"

Leia placed a hand on Han's knee as he sat next to her, hoping he would comprehend the warning to keep his mouth shut.

"What can I do for you, Heath?" Leia asked flatly.

"I heard about what happened at the rally. That must have been frustrating."

"What's that?" Leia responded, not intending to let him goad her.

"The protest. And I hear you got arrested—how terrible for you."

"How did you hear that?"

"Salma, one of our group leaders for Our Retacy, said you were sharing a cell with some of the other activists. She was hoping you still might come to your senses about Carrella, even after she found out who you really were. She's quite the optimist for a woman her age." He turned to Han. "I was surprised to not see you at our meeting this afternoon after the protest. But I guess I see why now."

"What's that supposed to mean?" Han growled. "I never said I was helping you guys."

"I knew that Carrella was desperate," Heath continued, "But spying on activist groups? Really?"

"No one was spying on you," Leia stated.

"Then why did you suddenly move the venue for your event?" Heath asked, "Seems like that happened pretty quick after 'Del' here was at our planning session."

She couldn't think of any reasonable explanation that would excuse Han's attendance at the meeting, so she opted instead to change the subject. "Heath, I know you have your convictions, but politics is not as simple as you make it out to be. Why are you going after Carrella? You can't possibly expect to win yourself, and if Morrs wins, everything you're fighting for will be in even greater peril."

He leaned closer to her. "And what are you fighting for? The only person who truly benefits from Carrella winning this race is Carrella herself. How much is she paying you to convince yourself otherwise?"

"Don't you think you're being a little dramatic, Heath?"

Heath turned to Han. "How about you? Is the money worth it, to sell yourself out like that?"

Han chuckled and shook his head. "Buddy, you have no idea what you're talking about."

Sitting back and looking at both of them quizzically, Heath tapped his fingers on the table. "How about a deal then? You give me three hours to prove my point to you, and I won't leak to the press that Carrella Starn's new Retacy Grows-funded campaign consultant was arrested while infiltrating a protest group today."

"But none of that is true!" Leia started. Heath shrugged.

"Reporters thrive on scandal," he said with a thin smile. "Since when did facts matter in an election?"

"Three hours?" Han said. "And no funny business?"

"On my honor," Heath said. "Think about it. I'll leave you to your meals." He stood up and sauntered back over to his table.

"What are you doing?" Leia hissed, "I don't have three hours to spend with that lunatic."

"Princess, you wanted to know what Starncorp was up to," Han hissed back. "This could be your big chance. And I'm supposed to keep you occupied for the rest of the evening. Just think of it as work." He grinned at her. "And maybe you can even find out who told them about moving your event."

"You're coming with me," she agreed finally.

"You bet your ass I'm coming with you, your worship," Han replied. "Now, about that food." He waved at the waitress. "I'm starving."


	7. Chapter 7

After some awkward wrangling, the three of them settled into Han's borrowed speeder—Han driving with Heath beside him, and Leia in the back where she could keep an eye on them both. She was grateful that Han had thought to bring along an additional hold out blaster when he and Carrella bailed her out of jail: hers was still sitting in the bag back at the location of the ill-fated rally. Looking up at Han, whose lips were tightly pressed together as he steered the speeder towards a highway, she presumed he was glad to have remembered that detail as well.

"So where are you taking us?" Leia asked pleasantly enough. If the worst threat Dolmin could make was leaking a bad story to the voracious planetary press, she wasn't concerned about their physical safety.

"Trelm," he responded, sounding surprised at her question. "I'm going to show you exactly what's going to happen there if Carrella and her cronies get their way."

"How long is that going to take?" she queried.

"It's about forty five minutes out of town." Heath looked down at his chrono. "I'm a man of my word. I'll have you back within three hours."

"You should be fine on that front," Leia said, poking a thumb into Han's back, "He tends to play fast and loose with speed limits."

"Only because you're always nagging me to hurry up," Han shot back at her.

"So what is your relationship?" Heath broke in. "And please, spare me the uncle/husband thing. There are very few planets where that sort of thing is condoned."

"I thought we were making this little trip so you could give us information," Han growled at him. "So how about you quit with the questions and start giving us some details on what you think is so important out here."

"All right," Heath said amicably. "As you may know, the Trelm region is host to a very complex ecosystem, including a number of rare bird populations. Unfortunately, about twenty years ago, it was also discovered that Trelm also has significant rare mineral deposits that are relatively easily accessible, if you avoid taking the condition of the flora and fauna into account, of course. The late Representative Chell was actually one of the most vocal advocates against mining in this area, and managed to push through a law giving the government strong regulatory powers to block any harmful work here. When he died, there was no longer anyone in the legislature interested in the oversight necessary to make sure the Ministry of Natural Resources did its job correctly. They issued permits for exploratory mining to a consortium of companies almost immediately….including Starncorp."

Leia listened silently, hearing the man's frustration and passion come through. He clearly cared deeply about his cause.

"Because of the existing regulations, the exploration was about the limit of what the companies could do," Heath continued. "As I understand it, there is a proposal in the legislature to loosen the regulations—one Carrella is likely to vote for if she gets elected."

"Why do you say that?" Leia asked mildly.

"The companies in the consortium—the one that formed Retacy Grows-hold a great deal of sway in the legislature. They convinced enough members to freeze the supply of the minerals found in Trelm until after the election. That way, if Carrella is elected, they can ship everything off planet and force the mining rights through because we'll need a new supply of these elements to replace the exports. If she isn't, they can raise prices and hope that the artificial shortage pushes the legislature into opening up mining. The only way to stop it is to bring in a legislator who will stand firm against the corporate interests, which is why I'm running."

"But surely you have no chance of actually winning?" Leia raised her eyebrows at him. "I've seen the polls. Your numbers are negligible."

"I'm aware of that, Kesia," Heath said with a patronizing smile. "But sometimes you still have to try, right?"

"Is it worth it, just for a patch of forest?" Han asked, keeping his eyes on the road.

"Nothing is worth it if you step back too far," Heath told him. "If you look at it from the perspective of the solar system, one forest doesn't make a difference. But it can still be a tipping point. How much galactic news do you follow?" Han grunted noncommittally. "The Empire out there, they destroyed a planet, did you know that? Just blew the whole thing away. On a galactic scale, that doesn't matter a bit. Galaxy keeps rotating, right? But you bet your butt it mattered to the people who called that planet home. And the people on the planets around it, who saw what could happen to them. It's the same with this forest. Today it's a patch of the Trelm region, and the next thing you know half the planet's been paved for speeder parking."

Han glanced in the rearview mirror, not surprised to see the color drained from Leia's face as she concentrated hard on looking out the window. Heath was caught up enough in his soliloquy that he failed to notice her hard expression.

"I know you have your reasons for working for Carrella," Heath concluded, "But please don't let her greenwash her way through this election. People deserve to know where she really stands." He turned back. "Kesia?"

Leia whirled back at him. "Have you stopped to think, Heath," she said testily, "That perhaps there are bigger things at play here than Starncorp's profit motive?"

He grimaced. "I thought you were a discerning young woman. But don't worry—I'll prove it to you." He looked to Han. "Turn here and park by that picnic table. I hope you're up for a bit of a hike."

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The thick canopy sheltered them from the lingering rain as they trudged down a pine needle littered path through the forest. Despite her arguments to the contrary, Leia was wistful as they made their way through the trees. She hated the thought of the old forest being cut down and stripped for natural resources. But sometimes such sacrifices were necessary, she reminded herself, thinking of her comrades shivering back on Hoth, unprotected by the malfunctioning ion cannon. That weapon was their primary defense against attacks from space, and each day it sat idle the Rebels were at greater risk of annihilation.

"So what exactly are you planning to show us that's going to make such a big difference?" Han asked Heath as they followed him deeper into the woods.

"Proof that Starncorp is poised to profit off the destruction of this forest," Heath said. "They try to keep it quiet, but they've got equipment out here already. My understanding is that they want to be ready to start leveling trees the day after the election."

"Well, you've got an hour and forty five minutes," Han told him, "And that includes travel time. I may not drive as fast going back."

"No, I suspect you won't." Heath pushed aside a fallen branch that blocked their path, revealing a steep drop off on the edge of a river. "There. Have a look."

Leia stepped up next to Han, gazing down the pristine gorge. The sheer gray walls on either side shimmered from condensation left by the lifting fog, and a single raptor circled in the wind currents.

"It's beautiful, but what does this have to do with Starncorp?" Leia asked, confused.

"Just wait." Heath pointed towards a spot in the middle of the river that was beginning to ripple and froth. Abruptly, a large piece of equipment emerged from the river, trundling towards the shore with a rock sample held high in its front shovel. As they watched, four more machines appeared up and down the river, and workers jumped out, loading the samples onto a sled.

"Take a look." Heath produced a tiny pair of binoculars and handed them to Leia. "Look at the logo on the side of the equipment. That'll be your proof."

Leia peered through the lenses, waiting for the machines to turn so she could get a clear look. Han watched her carefully, wondering how she would react. So far, it seemed like there was little Carrella could do that would distract the princess from her commitment to securing the terrellium for the Alliance. He doubted Heath would be successful in his quest, but then Leia gasped.

"See," Heath said smugly. "Starncorp."

Leia gave him a pitying look and then handed the binoculars to Han. He noticed her hands were shaking slightly as he peeked through, a pit forming in his stomach as he saw the ominously familiar crest adorning the equipment. In a flash, he reached out and gripped Leia's hand, pulling her to the ground.

"Heath," Leia said shakily. "I think you have far worse things to worry about than Starncorp."

Heath snatched the binoculars away from Han, peering down at the rumbling equipment. "I don't understand. Two weeks ago, that was Starncorp equipment. I'd swear to it." Looking more closely, he frowned. "What company uses that logo? I don't recognize it."

"It's not a company, and it's not a logo. Those belong to the Empire." Leia stayed on her belly and crept backwards through the grass into the shelter of the trees. "Let's get out of here."

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The three of them were silent as they hiked back through the dimming light towards the parked speeder. Han stayed close to Leia, who for once didn't argue as he pushed her down behind a tree whenever they heard an ominous noise just out of sight in the woods. With only a few weapons on them and no one aware of their true identities, their vulnerability frightened her more than she was willing to admit.

"We're almost back," Heath whispered as they scrambled over a fallen tree. Han and Leia were glad to see that he was intelligent enough to be rattled by their discovery, though they now had the unpleasant task of figuring out what to do next.

Leia breathed a sigh of relief to see the speeder unmolested where they had left it, though Han insisted on giving it a quick once over for bugs or bombs before he would let her in. She climbed back into the rear seat, watching Heath carefully as he buckled his crash webbing. He was still pale.

"I don't understand," he finally stammered as they pulled back onto the main road. "The Empire has never shown any interest in Retacy. Why would they be here now?"

"You all have something they want," Han said bluntly. "That's about all it takes."

"Well, now at least you don't have to worry about the outcome of the election," Leia sighed. "If the Imperials want something there, planetary regulations are hardly going to slow them down."

"I just never though Carrella, or any of them, would do business with the Empire!" Heath continued. "That's low, even for them."

Leia gritted her teeth. "I can assure you Carrella had nothing to do with this."

"How can you say that after what we just saw?" Heath's voice had a hysterical edge.

"Just trust me."

He leaned around to look directly at her. "Absolutely not. I don't know who you are or where you came from, but you are delusional. Or maybe you're with the Empire yourself? Is that why you showed up out of nowhere?" His eyes wide, he looked around frantically for an escape as Han continued to speed down the highway.

Leia simply shook her head. "Heath, do yourself a favor and shut up so I can think." There were a million reasons the Imps might be there. Maybe they wanted access to the minerals for their own purposes. Maybe they had heard that the Alliance was looking for terrellium and wanted to corner the market to block access—or even sell it and then trace the shipment to the new Rebel base. It could be anything.

Breathing deeply, she tried to center herself, focusing on their goal. There was no indication yet that the Empire had made any connections between Carrella Starn and the Alliance, though their sudden appearance on planet worried her, as did the continued presence of the parked Millennium Falcon in the private hangar in Ecerm. And moreover, someone in Heath's organization clearly had an inside track on Carrella's campaign, including, Leia remembered with a gulp, the specific location where she was staying. Maybe it was all coincidental, but she wasn't leaving anything to chance. Without a word, she flipped her blaster to stun and fired point blank at Heath's chest. He collapsed silently back into his seat.

"I guess I'm rubbing off on you," Han quipped. "What now?"

"I need you to find a place to stash him for a while. I'm going to try to find out who's sharing information with Heath's group from inside Carrella's campaign. I need to know whether anyone else knew she had reached out to the Alliance."

"You're not doing that on your own," Han protested.

"We don't have a choice. I'm not comfortable that Heath isn't in league with the Imps. You need to keep him contained until we have a better understanding of what's going on."

"And if he's innocent? This is going to piss him off."

"He'll understand," Leia said sweetly. "He's a true believer."

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Grumbling, Han dropped Leia off on the edge of downtown. They had carefully moved Heath to the trunk of the speeder while they were still on the outskirts of town, and Han accelerated away gently to avoid roughing up the unconscious man. He watched Leia walk away, head down, in the rear view mirror, fighting an urge to follow her back to Carrella's office. She'd promised to comm him when she arrived.

Pulling back out onto the highway, Han pondered his options. He was tempted just to leave Heath in the trunk and drive around for a while, mainly because the man's self-righteous attitude annoyed him. Leia could have the same sanctimonious demeanor when it came to the Alliance, but what was charming on her was just annoying when it came to Heath Dolmin.

Contrary to what Leia implied, Han didn't really believe that Heath had anything to do with the Imperials. The shock on the man's face when Leia had told him who the heavy equipment belonged to would have been hard to fake. But she didn't trust him, and that was good enough for Han. He drove on, trying to ignore the increasingly insistent banging from the trunk. Heath must be awake. And, as Han predicted, pissed.

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Leia whipped off a message to Han informing him of her safe arrival as she climbed the steps to Carrella's campaign office, her blaster tucked in easy reach. It was late, and the building was quiet and thankfully free of press. Letting herself into the office, Leia saw that only Eri remained pecking away on his computer.

"Hey," he said, looking up as she walked in. "Your bag is in your office."

"Thanks." Leia flopped down into a chair, wishing the mistaken arrest had been the worst thing to happen to her that day. "Where's Carrella?"

"I haven't seen her since she went to bail you out," Eri said. "I had assumed she was with you."

Suddenly Leia was fully alert again. "No, we went separately from the police station. You haven't heard from her at all?" Eri shook his head. "That's not good."

"I'm sure she's just taking a break. Did she tell you that we held onto the endorsements? The Friends people actually gave a great statement to the press about wanting to work within the system and make sure all concerns were addressed."

Leia shook her head. "No, Eri, I'm worried. We have to find her."

He watched her quizzically as she sorted through her bag, and then tossed it onto her shoulder. "Is there something you need to tell me?"

"Look, Eri." Leia chewed her lip, not sure how much to give away. "I think Carrella may have some enemies…"

"Of course she has enemies. She's running for political office." Eri ran his hand through his hair. "Is this about finding out who leaked the change in venue to the Our Retacy people? Cause we're on that. I have some guesses…"

"This has nothing to do with Our Retacy," Leia said firmly. "Can you please just trust me for now?"

"No."

"What?" Leia glared at him. "Why not?"

"Because I don't. And because you're one of the people I think might have leaked."

"Me?" Leia was indignant. "I was the one who found out that they were going to infiltrate in the first place."

"Which makes a damn good cover," Eri hissed. "You never were very clear on how you found out."

The rattling of the door interrupted them, and Carrella bustled in. "Kesia! I'm so glad to see you well."

Eri glared at Leia as Carrella set down a pile of bags. "What a horrible mess. I do hope you're all right, my dear."

"I'm fine," Leia said calmly. "Are you all right? We were worried about you."

"Just staying out of the limelight for a bit, my dear. I had some calls to return."

"I'm glad that's all it was." Leia moved over to the woman's side. "May I speak with you privately?" She turned to give Eri a withering look before he could protest.

"Of course. Let's go in my office." Leia followed Carrella in and then shut the door, leaving Eri to fume outside.

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The knocking and hollering finally got irritating enough that Han pulled down a secluded dirt road, backing the speeder up to a thorny shrub to give him cover. He had his blaster out as he opened the trunk, releasing a sweaty and extremely angry Heath Dolmin.

"What the hell are you doing?" Heath shouted, pushing out of the trunk and standing up before he noticed the blaster aimed at his head. "Hey now."

"Calm down," Han told him. "I'm not going to shoot you unless I have to."

"That's less comforting than you might think, Del."

"Sas," Han corrected him, the name grating on him still. He preferred Del, but trying to keep track of two pseudonyms was too much.

"All right, Sas." Heath put his hands up nervously. "What are you going to do to me?"

"That depends on you," Han said sternly. "Maybe you can start by telling me who you've got on the inside of Carrella Starn's campaign, and then we'll talk."

"What makes you think I have anyone on the inside?"

Han pushed the blaster a little closer. "Let's not be cute here, Dolmin. You all knew where that rally was moved to, you knew about my girl getting arrested, and you or someone you knew was dropping off flyers at her room."

"Your girl?" Heath queried. "She said you were her uncle."

"Do you not understand who is holding the blaster here?" Han growled. Obnoxious didn't begin to define this guy. Heath shrugged apologetically.

"There are a lot of people who share my concerns….about the environment," Heath added quickly. "But I'm not at liberty to identify them right now."

"Then I may not be at liberty not to shoot you," Han responded, flipping the safety back. "Is it that campaign manager of hers, the redhead?" Heath shook his head nervously. "One of the other office staff?"

"No. It's no one on the campaign." Han licked his lips. Who could it be? Then the answer hit him.

"It's her kid, isn't it? What's his name—Ty?" Heath paled, giving Han his answer. "Sheesh. Why would he get mixed up with a bunch of smelly greenies like you?" He knew that kid was trouble from the start. And of course Carrella hadn't suspected a thing, even bringing him along to pick up the Rebels.

"He has his reasons," Heath stammered, "And he's going to be looking for me."

The whine of an engine caught their attention, and Han looked briefly over his shoulder, keeping the blaster trained on Heath.

"I told you not to try any funny business," Han hissed, jumping behind Heath and holding his blaster to his head as a speeder pulled up alongside them. Ty Starn jumped out, accompanied by an unfamiliar man and, to Han's dismay, the reporter Fejj Smap.

"Tracker worked," Ty said with a wide smile, then frowned as he recognized Han. "Sas? You were working for my mother?"

"What?" Han evaluated the group carefully. None of them seemed to be armed. "First of all, no. Second of all, what do you mean, tracker?"

"Why don't you let him go and we can talk about it," Ty said soothingly. "I'm sure there's been a misunderstanding." Han looked over at Fejj, who appeared simultaneously terrified and thrilled by the prospect of a dramatic scene.

"I don't think so," replied Han firmly. "Not til I know exactly what you all are mixed up in. You can start by telling me why you were tracking him."

Ty rubbed his chin. "Isn't it obvious? He said he was going to be traveling with some of my mother's staff, and he was understandably concerned for his safety. He turned on the tracker on his commlink and said I should come after him if I didn't hear from him in four hours."

"And why would being with your mother's staff concern him so much?"

"I would think you should know, since you're working for her."

"Humor me," Han said tightly.

Ty's eyes narrowed. "I know exactly what your plans are, and I know you've been reaching out across the galaxy for no other reason than to enrich Starncorp."

"And that bothers you? Don't you work for Starncorp?"

Ty leaned in, whispering so only Han and Heath could hear him. "It didn't bother me that much when she reached out to the Rebel Alliance. But when she contacted the Empire….that was the tipping point."

Han pushed Heath away towards Ty, a chill running down his back as he holstered his blaster. "We have to get back to the campaign headquarters. Now."


	8. Chapter 8

"What's with the change of heart?" Heath asked as he stumbled into Ty. Fejj leaned in eagerly to hear Han's response.

"I could ask you the same thing," Han said to Ty as he pushed past them towards his speeder. "I thought you were close with your mom."

"I was…I am," Ty said, pulling Heath in close. "For a long time I dreamed of owning Starncorp. Then I met Heath." He leaned in to give him a quick peck on the cheek, then grinned at Han. "He taught me the error of my ways."

Han sighed knowingly. "Been there. Am there, really," he admitted, chuckling. "Does your mom know about you two?" Ty shook his head, looking alarmed. "Don't worry, my lips are sealed. Look, I'm sorry about the stunning and the kidnapping. It wasn't my idea, if that makes you feel any better."

"Whoa," Fejj muttered, producing a little notebook and scribbling furiously.

"But Le….Kesia could be in trouble. We have to find her."

"She did shoot me," Heath said in a hurt tone, "What makes you so sure she's not wrapped up in this business with the Empire?"

Shaking his head, Han jumped into the driver's seat of his speeder, doing a double take as the reporter slipped in next to him. "Do you mind?" Fejj asked. "It's a little cramped with them, and I'd love to have time for a few questions."

"Look, buddy, I don't have anything interesting to tell you," Han said, debating the merits of waiting around until Fejj was convinced to get out versus simply driving off with him. After a moment, he decided time was more important than avoiding annoying reporters, and started the engine. He zipped back down the road, Ty and his companions in close pursuit.

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"Carrella, I'm not sure how to put this, but I think you may be in danger," Leia said quietly, looking over her shoulder at the closed office door.

The older woman stopped her pacing and looked seriously at Leia. "What do you mean?"

"I ran into Heath Dolmin this afternoon, and agreed to spend a few hours with him—I was hoping to do some recon on his group." Carrella crossed her arms, her lips tight. "He insisted that I go with him out to the Trelm region. I thought it might be good to get a better understanding of what they're protesting out there."

"They have no idea what they're dealing with," Carrella muttered.

"Carrella, we saw surveying equipment with Imperial markings," Leia told her. "I'm concerned the Empire may know that you reached out to the Alliance. They may be out there in preparation to seize your company's assets, and if that happens I'm sure they will come after you."

"Kesia, explain to me again what you were doing with Heath Dolmin? What did you tell him?"

Leia pressed her fingers to her temples, exasperated that Carrella was focusing on her rendezvous with the political opponent and not the far more pressing issue of Imperial presence.

"Carrella, he was blackmailing me over the arrest. He said we were spying on his organization…"

"We were doing no such thing!" Carrella snapped vehemently. Leia paused.

"I know that. You don't need to feel defensive." Taking a deep breath, she continued. "The Alliance wants to be able to support your campaign because we're behind what you stand for, but I'm concerned that my continued presence here could be creating a risk."

Carrella's eyes flashed. "Don't give me that crap."

Now it was Leia's turn to sound defensive. "What do you mean?"

"You and your Alliance couldn't care less about my platform. If I win, you get something you want, and that's it. Why the hell would you be here otherwise?"

From her tone, Leia couldn't figure out if the advance team had given away their target, or if Carrella had simply figured it out on her own. At this point, it didn't matter.

"You're right," she said finally, "But that doesn't make me any less committed to your victory."

"I'm not worried about your commitment to me." Her tone was ominous, and Leia found herself scooting away. "The Starn family has a century long legacy of success on Retacy, and I intend to keep that going for my son. Winning this election is the only way to keep my company going."

Grimly, Leia mused that Heath Dolmin would love to have her words on tape. "Carrella, honestly, your motivations don't matter to me in the slightest."

"Good. Then you'll understand."

"Understand what?"

"Why I invited the Empire here to survey for resources in the Trelm region."

Leia sat back, gripping the desk. "Why would you do that? Your planet has managed to stay clear of Imperial rule for so long…."

"And it will stay that way. They only wanted to independently confirm the presence of the minerals they needed. The mining and shipping rights will be solely granted to Starncorp." Leia began to reach for her blaster as Carrella continued. "I don't want you to worry. They don't know that I had any help from the Alliance. If it weren't for the fact that they were able to offer a large long term contract, I never would have brought them in. But if you tell me what it is that you're looking for, I'm sure we can work out a deal."

Leia stopped, her blaster concealed in her palm. "What kind of deal?"

"I have a meeting with the Imperial representative this afternoon. You can pose as an investor who's put money into the original surveying, and request whatever it is that you need as compensation when Starncorp gets the whole contract." She smiled widely. "See? I do appreciate you, Kesia. I'm not going to leave you out in the cold."

"I'm not going to a meeting with any Imperial," Leia told her shakily.

"Why not?" Carrella looked offended. "I did think this through, you know."

"Let's just say I'm not well liked in Imperial circles."

Carrella stared at her silently, then reached out to push a curly blonde lock of hair out of Leia's face. "I see. Well, perhaps we can find another way…." She opened the door. "Eri?"

"Yes?" He poked his head in the office. Leia worked the blaster back up into her sleeve, hoping Carrella hadn't noticed.

"I'm afraid you were quite correct in your earlier supposition," she said cryptically. Leia leapt up, suddenly feeling very uncomfortable, but Eri blocked her way. She whipped out the blaster, aiming it for his head.

"Don't make me do this, Eri," she begged. Carrella was playing the young man, she knew it…

"I trusted you," he said sadly. "Kesia, why did you do it?" Leia closed her eyes, pulling the trigger. Eri fell, stunned, and a half second later Leia collapsed on top of him. Carrella shook her head as she put away her own blaster, yanking out a few strands of the girl's hair before dragging her into the office-cum-closet and locking the door. She turned back as Eri groaned, pushing himself upright and picking up the blaster Leia had dropped as she fell.

"What happened?" he mumbled, holding his head in his hands.

"Never you mind, dear," Carrella assured him. "All our problems will be behind us soon."

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"No Empire here. Perfectly safe on Retacy," Han muttered with a scowl as he pressed the gas pedal even harder. Beside him, Fejj looked slightly pale as the speeder accelerated further, but busied himself with his notebook as they whipped around a freighter, missing the bumper by a few inches.

"So who are you, really?" Fejj asked hopefully as Han cursed under his breath.

"I don't recall that being any of your damn business," he snarled back.

"If you tell me, I might be able to be of some help to you," Fejj offered, "I've been following the Starn family for some time."

"As I recall, even Ty Starn was pretty reluctant to talk to you," Han recalled. "Doesn't bode well, does it?"

"At the time I didn't realize his, um, association with Heath Dolmin." Fejj coughed. "Understandably neither wanted their relationship public—it would have harmed their standings with their respective organizations."

"So what brings you here now then?" Han pulled around a slow moving transport, fighting an urge to honk.

"Ty called me when he found that Heath had disappeared. He wanted someone to back him up publicly if it turned out his mother had indeed done anything untoward to her political opponent."

"Nice family."

"And when Ty revealed that your lady friend was in fact working for Carrella Starn—well, the pieces seemed to fall into place. Though that leaves me a bit perplexed as to why we're racing back so suddenly…" Fejj stopped, disappointed when Han failed to fill in any juicy tidbits. "So why are we racing back?"

Han looked over to glare at him. "All you need to know is that if Kesia has any trouble with Imperials, Carrella Starn is going to regret her that her parents ever met, much less her own birth."

"I see."

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"Pleasure seeing you again, Captain."

Captain Anton Matur took the Carrella's outstretched hand, kissing it in the manner of the old fashioned court instead of giving her the handshake she expected. She pursed her lips, understanding that the gesture was more to demonstrate that he saw her as a woman—and hence not an equal—but held her tongue. The future success of Starncorp was worth a few indignities.

The captain had descended to the planet in civilian clothes, the Empire not wanting to stir the pot on Retacy by making clear their intentions to harvest a significant supply of the planet's mineral resources. Contrary to belief, the Empire did not always choose to exert massive force in pursuit of its objectives, especially for relatively minor issues like a small supply of local minerals. Captain Matur's commander had been particularly blunt when describing the need for discretion around the possible acquisition of terrellium in particular. Apparently the Emperor was personally interested in finding an easy supply of the element as part of a top secret project that had been accelerated when the war with the Rebellion exploded. Matur was intelligent enough to know that asking more questions would lead him nowhere good.

"How may I be of assistance, madame?" Matur asked her. "I was surprised to hear from you so soon. I believe we had an understanding that our analysis of your holdings would take several days."

"Something that may be of interest came to my attention," Carrella said, her eyes traveling carefully over the darkened interior of the small café they used as a meeting place. "Something that may serve both of our interests, actually."

Matur simply raised his eyebrows, waiting for her to clarify.

"Tell me, what is the current bounty on Rebels?" Carrella smiled demurely.

"Depends on the Rebel. The Empire can hardly afford to pay a bounty on each and every fool that throws their life away on that ridiculous cause."

"Have you heard of a Kesia Harwano?" She scowled when he shook his head. "It could be an alias."

"How do you know this rebel?" Matur pressed. "We'd be glad to make an arrest."

Carrella pulled out an envelope, handing it to Matur. "I don't know where she is at the moment, but if it's worth your while, I can help you track her down. There's something in there that should help you make a positive ID."

He took the envelope gingerly. "All right then. Anything else?"

"Not at the moment. I'll be interested to hear when your people finish their analysis of the Trelm river bed. I think you'll find it very….rich."

He stood as she swept out, giving her a tiny bow as he tucked the envelope into his pocket. Interesting Rebels on Retacy seemed unlikely, but the biometric analysis was easy enough. Maybe he could gain a ticket out of the outer rim….

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Her head pounding, Leia woke up to complete darkness. She suppressed the urge to vomit as she grappled around in the pitch black, her fingers landing on the familiar plush surface of her desk chair. Pulling herself upright, she slammed her body against the door. "Hey!" she called. "Let me out!"

There was no response. She bent down to see if she could peer through the small crack between the door and the dingy carpet, but the room outside was dark as well. It must be late, and she knew from experience that the building was abandoned after hours. Eri was often around, but he was probably with Carrella, absorbing lies about how Leia had betrayed them all to their political opponents. How could she have been so stupid?

A clicking sound outside brought her to her feet, and she held her breath as she heard someone come into the office. A moment later the closet door opened, and Leia found herself staring at a blaster barrel.

"Hello, Carrella," she said blandly, taking a half step out of the closet. "Did you have your meeting with the Empire?"

"Indeed," Carrella responded, using the blaster to gesture Leia back into her tiny prison. "Lucky for you, they've never heard of you."

"I'm nobody to them," Leia said, wondering where Han was. Probably fast asleep somewhere after she'd sent him word of her safe arrival at the office. Maybe Heath Dolmin was awake and had managed to convince him of Carrella's treachery, she thought hopefully.

"They're checking on that. I gave them a hair sample." Carrella smiled at her as Leia's heart sank. "Perhaps you can tell me who you really are and I might be able to help."

"No thanks," Leia spat at her. "I've had enough of your help for one day."

"My dear, don't be so smug." Carrella pointed at the chair, indicating that Leia should sit. "You must understand what it's like to be in my shoes. You have something you care about, and you'd do anything for it, right?"

"You sound just like Heath Dolmin," Leia said with a humorless laugh.

"That doesn't surprise me," Carrella responded. "Our only difference is that I know how to win, and he knows how to whine." She grinned at her own joke. "What about you?"

"I'm always in it to win it," Leia said with a snarl, whipping her arm up to smack the blaster out of Carrella's hand. She gasped in shock as Carrella anticipated her move, snatching her wrist tightly and shoving the blaster against her head.

"Don't underestimate me, girl. It takes a lot to survive as a single mother in business on this planet."

"Clearly," Leia coughed, sinking back down into the chair. Carrella stepped back, slamming the door shut in her face.

"Enjoy the rest of your stay on Retacy, Kesia," Carrella snarled. "Or whoever you are."

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Fejj's comlink buzzed as the two speeders whipped into the outskirts of downtown Ecerm. "Yes?" he said into it, looking over at Han.

"It's Heath. Tell Sas to slow down."

Overhearing the tinny voice across the link, Han spoke up. "Why?"

Fejj held the comlink closer, listening to Heath's explanation. "He says Ty just spotted a man who has had a couple of closed door meetings with his mother and thought maybe we should follow him."

"Who?"

"Turn around and then park. Ty will point him out."

Han pulled a u-turn, forcing the speeder behind him to slam on its brakes, and left his vehicle on the side of the road in a spot marked "Fifteen minute parking only." He figured the car was registered to Carrella—any citations would be her well-deserved problem at this point.

Ty jogged up next to Han, ducking behind the speeder as he pointed out a tall, snappily dressed man walking purposefully away from them down the sidewalk. "That's the guy, I'd bet the company on it. You know him?"

Han shook his head. He could be an Imperial, but then again so could pretty much any human male. "Let's see where he heads." He waited for the rest of their small group to catch up and then led them casually in pursuit of their target.

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Slamming against the door had only earned Leia a bruised shoulder. She was getting better at lock picking, but as she recalled the door had a bolt on the outside, meaning that her ministrations with the knob would only get her so far. Feeling around, she noticed that Carrella must have removed the main computer while she was still unconscious from the stun bolt. The monitor was still there, though, and Leia fumbled for the power button. The room was washed in pale blue light as it glowed to life.

"Small victories," she muttered, looking around for something she could use to lever the door open. For an old building, the hardware was certainly well constructed: she doubted the half broken chair would gain her any ground. Then she heard a slight whoosh of air and looked up with a grin.

The ventilation system had kicked on, drawing her attention to a vent in the ceiling. She remembered another register sat directly above Eri's desk: if she could loosen the bolts and wiggle through…She glanced around, spotting an old plastic stylus under the desk. Pulling off one heeled shoe, she smacked it flat. Not the galaxy's greatest screwdriver, but it would have to do. Stepping up onto the chair and then onto the desk, she began working at the bolts.

In a rare lucky turn for that day, she managed to pull out the screws holding the vent cover in after just a few minutes. She hopped down and maneuvered the chair onto the desk, knowing that there was no way she'd have the upper body strength to pull herself up by her fingertips. Her serviceable—albeit unsteady—ladder constructed, she climbed up, taking a deep breath as she wiggled into the dust filled vent.

Her eyes watered as she pushed herself through the layers of dirt and mold that coated the ventilation system of the old building. She could see a faint sliver of light only a few feet away that she prayed was the vent over Eri's desk. Sucking in her breath to gain herself a few extra inches, she squeezed towards it, pulling her elbows forward to push as much body weight as possible on the vent cover. With a puff of dust and an ear splitting rattle as the vent cover landed on the metal desk below, she carefully nosedived through, landing in a heap on Eri's chair. The office was still pitch dark and empty, but Leia didn't want to waste any time. She brushed off the worst of the detritus from her hair and clothes and bolted out the door, down the stairs, and into the cool, drizzly night.

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"So what are we going to do when we catch up to him?" Ty whispered to Han as they continued down the street after the alleged Imperial, doing their best to stay out of the misty glow of the streetlights.

"You're the mastermind, buddy," Han whispered back. "Will he recognize you?"

"Maybe. Probably," Ty admitted. "So what do we do?"

"Let's see where he's headed," Han said. "Maybe he's staying on the planet?"

They continued to creep along, hanging half a block back, until they reached the small theater district. As Han suspected, the man turned into one of the luxurious hotels next door to Ecerm's premier playhouse and stepped briskly up the steps.

"Follow him," Han hissed at Fejj, pulling the rest of them back towards the corner.

"Me?" Fejj looked remarkably unhappy about his new assignment. "Why?"

"Best cover story," Han said. "If he spots you, you can say you saw him at Starncorp and want to interview him for your article."

"All right," Fejj agreed tentatively, pulling his jacket around him as he marched off. "But this better be worth it."

Han led the rest of them back around the side of the building, where they settled under an awning. He took a brief look around, and then pulled Ty aside. "Here is the code for my comlink. Call me when you find out anything."

"Where are you going?"

"To your mom's campaign headquarters. That's where Kesia was headed last."

"I'll go with you," Ty offered.

"Nope. Carrella doesn't know where you stand in all this, and I'd like to keep it that way. I'll be fine: I've got a few tricks up my sleeve." He trotted off back towards the parked speeders.

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Now both sopping wet and filthy, Leia ducked behind a dumpster in a dark alley, pulling her long blonde locks out of her face and wrapping them into a messy bun. Stripped of her blaster and her comlink, she was on her own. The only places Han might know to look for her were the rented rooms or the campaign headquarters, and she wasn't going to risk Imperial capture hanging around either of those spots. She wiped raindrops from her forehead and closed her eyes, concentrating. Where was Carrella unlikely to turn up? An idea struck her, and she took off down the alley at a dead run, hoping she remembered the location of Heath Dolmin's campaign headquarters.

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The building housing Carrella Starn's campaign office was locked and dark, but Han was undaunted. He pulled out a pair of thin tools from a small pouch on his belt and set to work on the locks, holding his breath as the door popped open. No alarm. He took the stairs two by two as he dashed up to the office, stopping to pull out his blaster as he approached the door. He gently wiggled the knob, stepping back against the wall as the door swung open, unlocked. He reached in to flip on the lights, coughing as mildew dust filled his nostrils. "Leia?" he called quietly. There was no response.

He spotted a painted metal screen on the floor and looked up, spotting the source of the pile of dust that coated one of the desks and computers in the middle of the room. Kneeling down, he noticed grey footprints leading out into the hall and back down another staircase. Not a bad escape, he thought, heading back down and out of the building. Now it was just a question of figuring out where the hell she had gone before the Imperials did.


	9. Chapter 9

She stopped briefly and doubled over, fighting against nausea as she hacked and spat out a fuzzy greyish mass. Leia didn't want to think about what might have been lingering in the air vents of that old building. Giving herself a moment to recover, she looked around, hunting for a street sign. The city was laid out in a grid, but the night had swallowed any landmarks that could have given her bearings. She watched as a speeder made its way slowly down the street ahead of her, and ducked back with a gasp, concealing herself in an alcove until the lights disappeared into the murk. Glancing around quickly, she took off again.

That stupid brochure that had caused all this trouble in the first place was still back in Carrella's office, Leia thought with a grimace. She should have broken back into the little closet to grab her bag, but all it contained was paperwork pertaining to the election—unnecessary dead weight, she felt at the time. But it had the address of the meeting place where Han had first encountered Heath Dolmin, and that was her current destination. It was a longshot, but she hoped to find a clue that would lead her to the relative safety of Dolmin's people. She just hoped her memory of the address was accurate.

The streets were all but abandoned, the rain now falling in sheets that rippled against the grey buildings. She could see small spots of light in some of the buildings, shadows of cleaning or maintenance workers blinking in and out. Leia shivered, pondering whether she would be better off holing up in an alcove until first light. At least she still wasn't as cold as she was on Hoth, she thought dourly, trying to keep her teeth from chattering. That comparison could make most situations look pretty good.

Leaning back against a wall, she looked up again at the street sign. The name looked familiar—she must be on the right track, but she was so tired. Nothing wrong with resting just a moment….

A whoop of a siren in the distance startled her to her feet, sending her off at a run before she could even process her own response. It was probably just a late night emergency call to break up a bar fight, but Leia had enough police for one day. Her feet ached as they slapped the concrete, then suddenly she skidded to a stop. This was the place.

The ground floor was locked and dark, but stepping back Leia could see the silhouettes of people huddled over desks and computers on the second floor. Thank the gods—it was the right building, and the office was just upstairs. She tried banging on the front door, and when that failed to elicit a response she found some stones in the small parking strip outside the building and heaved them at the window. Someone got up and looked quizzically down into the dark street, then disappeared for a moment before hustling into the lobby to push the door open. Leia stepped forward, dripping.

"Oh. It's you." Leia recognized the woman's long grey tresses.

"Are you Salma?" she asked. The woman didn't answer. "Please, can I come in? I need to find Heath."

"He isn't available at the moment. Do you have any idea what time it is, young lady?"

"Please." Leia peeked over her shoulder, expecting a squadron of stormtroopers to come marching around the corner any moment. "It's important. May I please come in?"

"Well, I suppose there's no point in letting you catch your death of cold. And yes, I'm Salma. Kesia, right?" Leia nodded as she stepped through the door and followed Salma meekly to the elevator.

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"Well?" Ty looked at Fejj impatiently as the man finally rejoined them, "What did you find out?"

"Not a hell of a lot. He wasn't interested in elevator chit chat."

"So what took you so long?"

"I staked out his room for a bit, then went down to the bar to see if I could hear any interesting gossip."

"And?"

Fejj shrugged. "There was a smashball game on. No one wanted to talk politics."

Heath's comlink began buzzing, and he stepped aside to take the call. He grinned as he returned.

"Well, one mystery solved. Our dear friend Kesia has turned up."

"Where?"

"My campaign headquarters." He began walking briskly back towards their speeder. "I think I'd like to have a chat with her before we get in touch with her friend to let him know."

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Han looked down at his comlink, wondering why Ty hadn't checked in yet. Although he found the man irritating, he hoped Fejj hadn't gotten into a scrape with their suspected Imperial. That was a fate he wouldn't wish on anybody.

"Sweetheart, where the hell did you go?" he muttered, pulling up his hood as he walked down the sidewalk. There were only a few spots on the planet that she was familiar with, and none of them were safe at the moment. For a moment, he wondered if she had tried to make her way back to the Falcon, but as far as he knew she was on foot and the spaceport was much too far to walk on a stormy night. He heard a cackle of laughter followed by the sound of punches being thrown in a nearby alley, and quickened his pace. Retacy might be safe, but she was still a young woman alone and unarmed. He never should have let her go back to Carrella.

The girl was too bullheaded for her own good. It was no wonder that a growing contingent of Rebels refused to go on missions with her. In his heart, he knew that wasn't the whole story—Rieekan had confided in him that in addition to her suicidal approach to her work, her constant night terrors and frequent plunges into deep depression during long space voyages left many of her fellow soldiers feeling alarmed and helpless. It was no wonder, given that attitude towards her, that she rarely slept and kept herself busy with work night and day. The Rebels wanted her to be a princess and a superwoman, he thought angrily, and then they leave her running from Imps down a cold rainy street on a planet a million light years from anywhere. She might fight it, but he resolved to be gentle to her if he found her. When he found her, he corrected himself.

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"Can I use a comlink?" Leia asked, pulling the borrowed jacket around her arms and shaking some of the drips from her sopping hair. They had found a fresh shirt for her to change into—green, of course, and emblazoned with the words "Dolmin for the Legislature"—and loaned her a jacket, but she was still in her dripping pants. "Just for a moment."

"In a minute," Salma told her tersely. "Do you want some tea?"

"Um, sure," Leia said, wondering what exactly was going to happen next. So far, her reception had been less than cordial, though she conceded that this was reasonable considering her alliance with the opposing campaign. "What are you all doing up so late?"

"Working, my dear. Election is coming up soon." Leia nodded silently. Fair enough.

There was a slight commotion at the door, and the bleary-eyed workers in the room lit up as Heath Dolmin walked in, smiling widely as he patted shoulders and shook hands. A consummate politician, he greeted each of the staff and the volunteers as he made his way towards Leia. "Thank you so much for your work. This is going to pay off. This means so much to me." His face was unreadable as he reached Leia, though he did give a slight grin when he noticed she was wearing one of his campaign shirts. "Why don't we go talk in my office?"

Silently, she followed him back to a windowless room, giving a quick glance at Salma as he shut the door. She wasn't thrilled about being alone with him, but surely he wouldn't try anything too awful with so many witnesses.

"You have quite the nerve, Kesia," he started as she held her hand up.

"Let's not do this, Heath. First off, I owe you an apology."

"I should say so!"

"I'm sorry. I hope at some point you'll understand why I did what I did."

"Never mind. I'm going to assume that because you're here, and because you seem to in, let's call it, a state unbefitting a campaign consultant, that you and Carrella had a falling out."

"Why don't we skip the details and go back to what we found in the Trelm region today," Leia suggested.

"I don't think so. If you want me to help you, I need to know exactly how you came to be in Carrella's employ."

"Trust me," Leia said sharply, "No good could come of you knowing that."

"Then I guess we're at an impasse. I'll just let my staff know to go ahead and contact the police about an intruder here. I don't think Carrella is going to keep you from having your identity verified this time."

"Heath!" Leia's voice was sharp. "This is not about you, or even about Carrella. Why can't you just accept that?"

"First, because you shot me…"

"Stunned you," Leia corrected.

"You shot me. You kidnapped me, and you have done nothing to earn my trust that you are anything but a stooge for Carrella Starn." Heath crossed his arms and glared at her.

"Where's Sas?" Leia asked suddenly. "He let you go, didn't he?"

"How would you know?"

"Because you're here," Leia noted, letting the exasperation seep into her tone, "If he hadn't released you, you wouldn't be here."

"Maybe I escaped." Leia just laughed.

"Where is he?"

"Looking for you. He was headed to Carrella's campaign office when we parted ways…"

"What?" Leia jumped up. "No! She could be coming back any minute."

"And?"

"Heath, you're pissed at me. I get that. But don't take it out on him."

He grabbed at her, trying to snatch her wrist and force her down into the chair, but she jumped back to avoid him. "You have to let me call him," she begged. Her breath grew ragged at the thought of Carrella bringing Imperials back to arrest her, only to find Han waiting…."Please." He continued to stare daggers at her, and finally she sighed. "We're members of the Rebel Alliance, Heath."

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"Don't you think we should call him?" Fejj and Ty sat in the dark speeder outside Heath's campaign headquarters. "I'm sure he's worried sick."

"Heath wanted to talk to her," Ty said. "Given what she put him through, that seems only fair."

"But what if your mother finds Sas at the campaign office? It could get traced back to you," Fejj argued. "Didn't you say she assigned you to him when they first arrived."

"That doesn't mean she'll think I'm involved," Ty argued.

"It will if he tells her you are," Fejj pointed out. "How much do you trust him?"

Ty sighed, picking up his comlink and inputting the code Han had given him. "Are you always this paranoid?"

Fejj laughed. "In my field, someone is always out to get you."

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Han stepped under an awning as his comlink buzzed, fatigue taking over and delaying him as he struggled to remember his alias. "Sas here," he said finally.

"It's Ty. We found her."

He let out a long sigh of relief. "Where? I'll be right there."

"Heath's campaign headquarters. Downtown, second floor of the Lemern Building."

"Where that meeting was? About the protest?"

Ty paused a second, and Han could hear him asking someone, probably Fejj, whether that was indeed the right spot. "Yep."

"I'm close. I'll be there in a minute."

"We're right outside."

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Han dashed up to the crumbling building, hair dripping, and stopped short as Ty leapt out of his speeder and blocked the way. "Heath is just talking to her quick. They'll be right down. Just wait with us."

"Talking to her about what?" Han growled, pushing past him and rattling the locked door.

"He didn't say. He just wanted a couple minutes."

"You have a key?" Han looked back and forth between Ty and Fejj before once again finding his lock picking kit. "Fine. I'll do it myself."

"Wait!" Fejj stopped him. "I have one."

"What happened to an objective press?" Han grumbled as Fejj unlocked the door.

"Objective is in the eye of the beholder," Fejj called after Han, who raced inside towards the stairwell.

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Leia could hear angry shouts from the room outside, and was not entirely surprised when the office door burst open a moment later. Han stood there, ignoring the protests of the campaign staff behind him.

"Are you all right?" he asked Leia. Heath started to speak and Han raised his hand to silence him. "I asked her."

"I'm fine." She smiled slightly. "I'm glad to see you here."

"We were just having a conversation," Heath said defensively. Leia gave him a withering look, then turned back to Han.

"It's fine. Really." She leaned in closer. "We have to get out of here. Now."

"Couldn't agree more." He took her hand, guiding her out of the office as another commotion drew their attention back to the main door. Fejj burst in, followed closely by Ty. Han frowned, wondering what could have driven the Starn heir out of hiding when the room was illuminated by flashing red and white lights. "What's goin' on?" he hissed to Heath.

Before the man could respond, the whine of a bullhorn shook the building. "This is the police. Come out with your hands up!"

"Huh," Han commented as a perplexed murmur rippled through the staff. "That can't be good." He turned to Leia, who was staring wide eyed at the light reflected in the long windows that looked out on the street. "Stay here. I'll try to find out what's going on."

"No!" Leia held tight to his hand, pulling him close. "What if it's Imperials?" she whispered.

"Whoever it is will bust in here soon enough if we don't do something," he whispered back at her. "Now just listen for once and stay here."

Rolling her eyes at the young people cowering on the floor around here, Salma stood and walked over to the window, showing her hands to the officers below. "Calm down, everyone," she ordered. "Heath, come with me, young man. We're going out there to find out what's going on."

Ty stood up. "You can't—Heath, what if you're arrested?"

"I've been arrested before," he said, giving Ty a gentle pat on the cheek. "Salma is right—you stay here with them," he gestured to Han and Leia, "And we'll find out what's up."

"I'm coming with you," Fejj announced, not wanting to miss out on anything interesting. Heath shrugged and gestured Salma and Fejj out the door, shutting it tightly behind him.

Keeping close to the floor, the room's remaining occupants crept to the window, straining to hear the conversation below. There was a brief commotion as the trio emerged from the building, and then Salma's voice rose above the hum of engines.

"Kindly tell us what this is all about," she said firmly.

"You're under arrest," an officer said. "Carrella Starn's campaign office was broken into this evening and we have strong evidence connecting it back to Mr. Dolmin here."

"You think I broke into her campaign office?" Heath asked indignantly, the tenor of his voice rising. Ty started to stand but stopped as Leia yanked him back to the floor. "What evidence could you possibly have to support that?"

"We'll discuss that back at the precinct," the man responded. "Now come with me." There was some incomprehensible chatter, and then they him say, "Here's the warrant. Go ahead and search the premises."

"C'mon, we're getting out of here." Staying on his hands and knees, Han indicated for Leia to follow him back towards the rear door. "There's gotta be a back way out somewhere, right?"

"Follow me," Ty said. Han looked over in surprise. "I've been here on a few late nights, okay?"

"Whatever you say, Kid. Lead the way."

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The police refused to let the reporter accompany Heath and Salma to the police station, so Fejj lingered by the door to the old building, hoping to overhear details about what exactly had precipitated the police raid. Spotting a likely looking young detective, he sidled over and coughed to get the man's attention.

"So what went down at the Starn HQ?" he asked inquisitively.

"Starn came in to find the whole place torn apart and some documents missing," the man responded, clearly bored with his guard duty. "I guess there was some graffiti linked to that Our Retacy group."

"Seems kind of dumb," Fejj prodded, "To break into your opponent's office and leave a calling card?"

The detective chuckled. "Between you and me, I agree. But Carrella Starn is well connected, and after that whole mess with her rally she, well, insisted that we investigate this angle first."

"I see." Fejj grinned. "Thanks, Detective…?"

"Nuh uh." The detective quickly slipped his hand over his name badge. "I know who you are." Fejj simply winked and turned to walk back into the lobby.

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For the second time that day, Leia found herself crawling through a dirty, cramped passageway inside a building that probably should have been condemned years earlier. This time at least she had a bit of wiggle room, though the same could hardly be said for Ty and Han.

"How much further?" Han barked in a whisper behind her. Leia cringed as his voice echoed off the concrete walls.

"Just a little ways. This leads to down to where they store the dumpsters." Leia kicked out behind her, silencing Han before he could make any cracks at her.

There were no junctions in the passageway, which was a relief to both Han and Leia given that they lacked any sort of illumination. A few times Leia thought she felt something furry run past her, but held her breath and ignored the urge to shudder. Han kept a hand reassuringly close to her foot, occasionally reaching out and giving her ankle a reassuring pat.

A sudden draft told them the exit was close. Ty stopped them, swinging his legs down and dropping quietly onto the metal cover of a garbage dumpster. He reached out a hand to help Leia down, and then they jumped to the ground to make way for Han.

"Now that is a much more pleasant way to drop through a garbage chute," he whispered, nudging Leia. "Take some notes."

"Maybe if you didn't get us into these situations in the first place, it wouldn't be such an issue," Leia snapped back.

"Me?" Han pointed to himself. "How is this my fault? I came here to rescue you."

"I didn't need rescuing," Leia spat.

"So you keep saying."

"Excuse me." Ty raised a quiet hand. "Maybe we can continue this conversation elsewhere? Before the police seal off the building?"

Leia gave Han once last glare before marching after Ty. They slipped through a doorway into a long, narrow alley. Ty gestured with his head for the other two to follow, and they tore off into the night.


	10. Chapter 10

Han held tight to Leia's hand as they ran, admiring the endurance of the young man who led them. Must have been on a cross country team or something, he mused, looking down as he heard the princess trying to stifle a coughing fit.

"You okay?" he asked, slowing down. She nodded, urging him to keep up the pace.

"Just got some crud in my lungs. Been hanging out in too many places unsuitable for human habitation," she explained, panting. He nodded and then let go of her hand, sprinting ahead to catch up with Ty as they dashed around another corner.

"I think we lost them," Han said, breathing heavily, "Not that anyone seemed to actually be chasing up." Ty skidded to a stop. "Where are we headed?"

"My place," he whispered, "If that's okay."

"We need to get to the spaceport," Han told him, "Can you take us?"

Leia jogged up behind them, catching the end of the conversation. "Why would we need to go to the spaceport?" she asked critically.

"Because we're loading up and getting out of her, sweetheart. I'm calling off the mission."

"I beg your pardon?" Leia's hands went to her hips. "First of all, this isn't your mission to call off. And secondly, I am not just abandoning these people to the Empire."

"I fail to see how us sticking around is going to keep the Empire off their backs now," Han retorted. "Finding us here isn't going to endear them, you know?"

"Well, then we're just going to have to figure out a way to keep them from finding us here, aren't we?" Leia said tightly. Which meant finding out what Carrella had done with the biometric sample she had taken, but that wasn't something that was going to be resolved while they stood in the rain arguing on a street corner. "Ty, can we get into your home without being spotted?"

"Definitely," the young man responded, grateful that the subject had changed. "But it'll be easier if we get there before sunrise. C'mon."

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"Now this is preposterous," Heath Dolmin said as Carrella Starn walked into the small windowless office where he had been escorted by the police officers. "Are you a cop now too, Carrella?"

"Cut the crap, Heath," she snapped at him. "I want to know who you have on the inside of my organization."

"I thought I was arrested because I supposedly vandalized your office," he sneered.

She stopped pacing to smile at him. "My office was vandalized, it's true." Catching her meaning, Heath rolled his eyes. "But you have someone feeding you information, and I want to know who it is."

Heath was half tempted to confess to Ty's involvement, mainly because he knew it would kill Carrella to know her son was dating a no-good hippie treehugger, but the situation with Kesia and Sas made him hold his tongue. Members of the Rebel Alliance, she had said…and Carrella was in league with the Empire. Kesia was right when she told him that he really didn't want to know what was going on.

"I really don't know where you think you get the right to interrogate me like this, Carrella," he said finally.

"Oh, I don't have any right," she said sweetly. "But I'm doing it anyways. I'm going to find out your secrets, Dolmin. And trust me—whoever it is that's been spying on me had better watch their back." She patted him on the head patronizingly before stepping back out the door. "Have fun in jail, Heath."

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"Nice digs, kid." Han whistled. Apparently being executive vice president of a huge company was pretty lucrative, given the size and outfittings of Ty's apartment. He'd led Han and Leia in through an unmanned service entrance and up to the penthouse suite, giving them a bird's eye view of Retacy's sun peeking up over the clearing clouds on the horizon.

"Thank you again, Ty," Leia added. "Now that we're in the clear, can I ask how exactly you got mixed up in all this? I thought you worked for your mother."

"Oh, I do," said Ty with a nod, heading into his bedroom to pull out some dry clothes. "But not politically. Of course, she doesn't exactly know that."

"I take it then that you were the one who told Our Retacy about the venue change for the rally?"

He blushed. "I'm sorry you got arrested. No one intended for that to happen."

"It's all right," she assured him. "The police officers were very gentle and polite."

Ty's curiousity was piqued. "Have you been arrested before?"

"Why don't we get out of these wet clothes?" Han interrupted. Still annoyed at Leia's insistence on staying on the planet, he wanted to a chance to discuss next steps with her without any eavesdroppers.

"Of course!" Ty handed them each a small pile. "I don't know how well these will fit, but they'll do for now. Toss me your things and I can put them in the dryer." Leia took the proffered clothes with a smile and disappeared into a lavish 'fresher just off the entry way. Han waited, watching as Ty went into his own room and shut the door before following Leia.

"What the hell?!" she shrieked as he walked in on her, turning his back to shut the door as she pulled a towel across her bare chest.

"Grow up, princess," he whispered. "You don't have anything I haven't seen before. I needed to talk to you without that little twerp around."

"That's a likely excuse," she hissed back. "Haven't you ever heard of knocking?"

"But you're so cute when you're surprised." She seethed, watching him carefully to ensure he didn't turn around as she dropped the towel and buttoned the fresh shirt.

"So what do you want to talk about?"

"What are we doing here?"

"We still need to secure the terrellium for the Alliance," Leia said adamantly. "And Carrella gave the Imperials some kind of DNA sample from me. We have to stop them from doing an analysis on it—if the Imps discover that I'm here, a lot of innocent people could be killed."

"Is that all?" Han sighed. "You don't make things easy, do you?"

"Nope."

"Okay, well, I know where the Imp is staying. We could try to get into his room and find whatever it is Carrella gave him. Do you have any ideas?"

"Probably hair. I didn't have any mysterious scratches or anything."

"And that just leaves the terrellium. Any ideas there?"

Leia nodded. "Actually, yes. But I don't think you're going to like it."

"Why?"

"Because it involves making sure Carrella Starn wins her election."

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An hour later, the three of them sat around Ty's kitchen table drinking coffee when there was a rap on the door.

"There's a closet in the bedroom," Ty whispered. "I'll come get you when the coast is clear."

Leia grabbed their mugs to hide the evidence of company, and, ever mindful of his rumbling stomach, Han brought along two of the breakfast pastries that Ty had set out for them. They scurried into the bedroom and pulled the closet door shut behind them.

Unlike the rest of the apartment, this particular closet wasn't huge. Han settled himself to the floor, propping up his knees against the wall and taking one of the mugs of coffee from Leia. He patted the carpet in front of him, inviting her to sit down, but she remained standing and leaned against the door to hear what was going on outside.

"Mother, good morning! I wasn't expecting you," Ty said, kissing Carrella on the cheek.

"Good morning, my darling." She walked over to the cupboard and pulled out a mug, pouring herself some coffee from the half full pot. "You shouldn't have so much caffeine—it's not good for you."

"I didn't sleep well last night," Ty said, making a show of rubbing his eyes.

"Me neither, love. I had a terrible night actually—someone broke into my campaign headquarters!"

Ty did an admirable job of feigning surprise. "That's awful! Was anything stolen?"

"I don't think so, but still, it rattles you. The police think it might have been someone involved with that group that showed up to protest my endorsement event. Can you imagine?" Ty just shook his head, an expression of disbelief on his face.

"There's something else I need to talk to you about as well, dear." Carrella sat down at the table, noticing briefly that the chair seemed oddly warm. "You know those Alliance representatives, the one who were helping with my campaign? They've disappeared. I'm afraid we may have been double crossed."

"What do you mean, Mother?"

"One of the project managers out on the Trelm project said that they had been contacted by a surveyor who claimed to have been sent by the Imperial government. I think someone, and I don't know who, let them know of my overtures to the Alliance." A few unshed tears pooled in her eyes. "Apparently if we don't do something quickly to demonstrate loyalty to the Empire, they may seize the entire company."

"What are you going to do, Mother?" Ty knew her outreach to the Empire had begun in earnest weeks beforehand, but her distress made him wonder if perhaps she was more innocent than he originally assumed.

"I'm afraid we have no choice but to sign an exclusive contract with them."

"But what about the partner companies? Starncorp isn't the only one with interests in mining in Trelm."

"I suppose that all hinges on the election then. If Morrs wins and votes to maintain the moratorium on shipping minerals off planet, we'll have no choice but to break our contract with the Empire, and who knows how they'll react."

"And if you win?"

She smiled. "My darling, a contract with the Empire will put us in an excellent position to buy out the rest of the companies in the partnership. Then Starncorp will have exclusive control over terrellium and mondnapium, and well, you know what that does to prices." With a slight chuckle, she added. "That'll show the Retacy Grows people for endorsing Morrs."

Leia's face was unreadable as she strained to hear Carrella's words. Ty didn't seem to be giving any indication of betraying them, but she was his mother and that was enough to leave Leia concerned. As Ty shifted the conversation to more mundane topic, she finally accepted Han's invitation to sit. She tried facing him, but her knees smacked awkwardly into his chest, nearly making her lose her balance. With a soft sigh, she turned around, settling between his legs and leaning into his chest so they could talk.

"She still seems to think Ty is on her side," Leia whispered nearly inaudibly. "Hopefully that will bode well for getting her set up for victory."

"I still don't get how that's going to help us if she's planning on giving exclusive mineral rights to the Imps," Han whispered back.

"Ty can help with that too. They were prospecting, didn't you notice? I'd bet the Imps don't trust that the minerals here are actually worth their while. That's why they're letting local companies get involved instead of just coming in and strip mining the place."

"But the minerals are worth something, right?"

"Yes. But if we can get Ty to alter the test results, maybe we can get the Imps to back off on their end of the bargain."

"And the election?"

"We'll need cooperation from Heath Dolmin. Carrella was still down three points in the last poll. If we can get Heath to confess publicly to sabotaging her, and drop out of the race while endorsing her, we can probably regain the advantage."

"Is that all?"

"No. We need to make sure the Imps don't find the Falcon, either. Carrella knows where it's stored, remember?"

"Is that all?"

"Unless you have something to add, hot shot?"

There was a muffled thump near the bedroom door, and both of them startled, Leia pushing herself deeper into Han's embrace. Instinctively he threw an arm around her, reaching for his blaster and putting one hand over her mouth to silence her completely. She glared up at him but remained still. After nothing happened for a moment, they relaxed.

Suddenly the closet door opened, leaving them blinking in the light. "She's gone," Ty said, looking down at them with some amusement. "Unless you two want some more privacy?"

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Carrella had returned to the police station to give her report when two young Our Retacy volunteers walked in, looking around shyly.

"Excuse me," one of them asked a woman sitting behind a tall desk. "Is this where we come to bail someone out?"

"I'll get someone to help you, dear," the woman chuckled.

Carrella could overhear them whispering furiously to each other. "I don't know! I'm usually the one to get bailed out, not do the bailing. She seemed nice anyways."

"You're here for Dolmin, aren't you?" Carrella said imperiously, walking over to the young people and scowling. "Breaking and entering is a serious crime. I doubt you, or he, can afford bail right now."

"That's none of your business!" The young woman stood nose to nose with Carrella, drawing looks from the officers around the room.

"Now, now," one of them called out. Wrinkling her nose, Carrella backed off.

"This way, dears." The receptionist gestured for the two youth to follow her, and they stalked off, giving Carrella one last glare. Dolmin must be draining his meager campaign account to get out of this, she thought smugly.

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"You came in the back, right?"

"Of course. I'm not an idiot."

Ty sighed with relief and then bustled Heath into his apartment. "You look terrible."

"Thanks, babe. Right back at you."

Ty smiled at him fondly, giving him a quick kiss before pouring the remains of the coffee into a mug and adding copious amounts of sugar. "Just like you like it."

"You're the best." Heath sank into one of the kitchen chairs. "Thanks for bailing me out."

"Of course. I'm sorry it took so long. I had to arrange to get cash from my private account so Mother wouldn't notice."

Heath took a long sip of coffee. "She was kind enough to pay me a visit."

Leia, who had been in the 'fresher changing back into her own clothes, now dry, walked in. "Carrella did? Why?"

"To taunt, I guess. She all but admitted she trashed her own office. Then she asked me who had been feeding information to my organization."

Ty blanched. "Do you think she suspects?"

Heath shook his head. "I sincerely doubt it. You're probably at the bottom of her list of possible leaks, if you're on the list at all. You're the apple of her eye, you know?"

Han joined them from the bedroom, back in his clothes as well. "Hey," he said to Heath. "Thanks for taking the heat back there." Heath simply nodded curtly.

"So now that we're all here, let's talk strategy," Leia said, sitting down at the table. "Heath, I appreciate what you did to help us get out last night. I know we didn't get the best start…"

"What you told me…." Heath started, then looked at Ty. "Does he…?"

"Yes, he knows we're with the Alliance," Leia stated. "I understand that puts you in an uncomfortable position, and I hope you'll take my word that we will do everything we can to keep our presence here a complete secret. But we're going to need your help."

"On one condition." Heath gave her a hard look. "I want to know what it is that the Alliance wants here on Retacy."

Leia took a deep breath, looking at Han—he couldn't tell if the look was for approval, or forgiveness. "Terrellium," she said finally. "We need terrellium."

Heath stood up, slamming his cup down on the table. "And that's why you were helping Carrella? You knew about the mining plan all along?"

"No." Leia rubbed her temples with her fingers. "We just needed access to the frozen supply. Carrella is the only one who would vote to release it back onto the galactic market. I had no idea about how that would affect mining."

"Of course you didn't," Heath spat. "Why would the fate of our little planet concern you?"

"Heath, Retacy isn't the only planet at stake here. We're fighting for the freedom of billions of beings."

"Yes, at the cost of our planet. Why don't you go mine your own damn home planet? Maybe then you'll understand the meaning of sacrifice."

"Hey, watch it." Han stood up, stepping between Heath and Leia. "You can't say that to her."

"Everybody calm down!" Ty held up his hands. "This is getting us nowhere, and in the meantime my mother is mortgaging our planet to the Empire. So can you please just hear her out?"

Han could see Leia was fighting against an instinct to lash out at Heath—something he fully supported in general, but he knew she'd regret it soon enough. "Why don't you start with the plans for derailing the Imperial mining contract?" he said gently.

Leia smiled at him gratefully. "Good idea. We need to get the Imperials off planet, and the best way to do that at this point is to convince them that there's nothing here that's worth their while. They're clearly doing an independent analysis of the natural resources in Trelm, but Ty confirmed earlier that the standard minerals that they'll use for comparison are held by Starncorp. It's simply a matter of swapping out the standards that they'll use for a baseline, and they'll find that there's nothing of value in the Trelm region."

Looking slightly mollified, Heath nodded. "Go on."

"From our perspective then, we need to make sure that the Imperials have no evidence that we're here. Carrella told me that she passed some sort of DNA sample to the Imperial rep that's planetside. He's already been tracked, so we know where he's staying. It's just a matter of getting into his room and finding and destroying the sample before it can be used to identify me."

"And what's the big deal about identifying you?" Heath asked. Leia didn't respond.

"We also need to get our ship away from the spaceport. Carrella knows where we parked, and the Imperials might be able to track us down from the ship."

She looked at Heath. "Finally, it's still critically important that we get access to the terrellium the Alliance needs. Unfortunately, that means we need to make certain that Carrella wins her race."

"Hm." Heath crossed his arms. "And how do you propose that?"

"She's still down by a few points, but this supposed break in at her office will earn her a lot of press. We need you to help us make sure it's good press."

"How?" asked Heath suspiciously.

Leia took a deep breath, bracing herself for his reaction. "You'll need to drop out of the race, confess to vandalizing her office, and endorse Carrella Starn."


	11. Chapter 11

"Okay," agreed Heath.

Leia did a double take. "Really?"

"No. I'm being sarcastic. Are you crazy? I'm not dropping out for that woman."

"Watch it," Ty warned. "I know how you feel about her, but she is my mother."

"I thought it was a little nutty too," Han admitted, "But hear her out. She doesn't approach this sort of thing lightly." Heath pursed his lips and stared expectantly at Leia.

"She's only down by a few points, and as I'm sure you're aware, we've been actively pursuing your base," Leia said, looking Heath in the eye. "If you pull out, some of your supporters will simply avoid the polls, but I think enough of them would switch over—especially if you actively encourage them to—to give Carrella the win."

"Assuming I say yes, which I'm not, what's the point then of having me confess to the vandalism?"

"One, it closes the matter so the press doesn't ask her any uncomfortable questions. Two, it may get us a few of those undecided voters from the middle to pad the spread."

"Us? So you're still working for her?"

Unable to hold it in any longer, Leia rolled her eyes. "I was never working for her, really. Her victory aligned with my interests."

"That's a rather cynical view, don't you think?" Heath intoned, imitating her eye roll.

"Do you honestly believe you can keep the Empire out of here forever?" Han interrupted. "Even if we scare off this captain-what's-his-name right now, what makes you so damn certain that Carrella Starn is the biggest threat to your precious trees? It's not like the Imps are known for their conservation efforts."

"Heath, please just give them a chance," Ty broke in.

"I'll do it for you," Heath responded, smiling at Ty. "So what's the endgame? Carrella wins, then what?"

"Once we've gotten rid of the Imps and Carrella votes to free up the terrellium supply, the Alliance will buy what they need and then we'll figure out a way to neutralize the mining project."

"That sounds a little half cocked," Heath said critically. "Have you got a plan for how you're going to neutralize the mining project? What does that even mean?"

"I've got some ideas," Leia admitted. "We could manufacture a scandal that forces her out of office. Or the Alliance could fund a shell corporation that buys out the partner companies stakes in Trelm and then blocks any future mining."

"That's going to require some skin in the game from you all," Heath noted. "Why should I believe that you won't just up and disappear once you've got your terrellium?"

"I can only offer you my word," Leia said simply.

"I don't know….it's quite a risk," Heath took a deep breath and leaned back in his chair. "I'm not sure it's worth it."

"Hm. Well then, unfortunately my backup plan involves having 'Kesia Harwano' contact the authorities to report that she was kidnapped by activists from Our Retacy." Leia looked at Heath thoughtfully. "It might be hard convincing them to set bail for that one."

"You wouldn't!" Heath stood up, glaring at Leia. He looked over to Ty for support, but the young man was covering his mouth, trying to pretend that his chuckles were a coughing fit. "What's so damn funny?"

"It's not very often that someone beats you at your own game," Ty responded, shrugging. "You have to admit that was pretty good."

Leia smiled. "So do we have a deal?"

"You are ruthless, you know that?" Heath said with a grimace.

"In my industry, that's a necessity."

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Ty took Heath aside to give him some time to cool down as Leia focused on drafting his concession speech. Peeking over her shoulder at the borrowed computer, Han grunted appreciatively.

"You've got quite a way with words," he said.

"Was that a compliment?" she asked as she continued typing.

"Only if you're into listening to speeches," he said with a wicked grin. "Seems to me if you all spent more time shooting down Imperial ships and less time speechifying, we might have this war won by now."

"Thanks for the insight. Now will you bug off?"

"Actually, if you can spare a moment, your Worship, we need to talk strategy."

She spun around in the low office chair to face him. "Yes. You are in charge of breaking into the Imperial's room and stealing the sample that Carrella took from me. Ty and I will move the ship to his hangar outside the city, and then he'll head to the Starncorp building to change the samples that the Imps will use to confirm the quality of the minerals from the Trelm region. We'll all gather back here before Heath goes out to make his speech."

"Back up, sister. What did you say?"

"I don't have time to keep repeating myself." She sighed and started to turn back around, but Han caught her by the shoulder and spun her to face him.

"Nobody is flying my ship but me, got it?"

"We don't have time for that," Leia hissed, her voice laced with frustration. "You are the only one who can break into that room, and we're only flying the ship a few dozen kilometers. We're not even taking it into space."

"Her."

"What?"

"Her. You call my ship 'her' not 'it.' Understand?"

"I will call that bucket of bolts whatever I damn well please, and I will not have you compromising this mission over some stupid egotistical connection to that captain's chair." She shook free of his grasp and turned back to the computer. "Now if you'll excuse me, I have a speech to write and you have a burglary to plan."

Han stalked off, seething. He knew she was disrespecting the Falcon just to get under his skin, and it bugged him even more that her logistical planning was sound. It did make the most sense for her and Ty to move the ship, and it would keep her out of trouble for a while. But at the same time, the whole thing just made him a little queasy. "I've got a bad feeling about this," he muttered. Leia ignored him.

"How is the end of my political career coming?" Heath meandered glumly into the main room.

"Oh for heaven's sake," Leia said. "Is there anyone here capable of acting like something other than a big baby?" She scooted over so Heath could look at her draft. "It's not the end of your career. I softened the 'confession' a bit so that you're just apologizing for creating the impression among your volunteers that politics is a winner-takes-all sport that justifies any means, up to and including breaking into an opponent's headquarters."

"That's a bit rich coming from you, isn't it?" Heath asked. Leia ignored him too.

Ty came out too, heading for the kitchen to avoid the simmering conflict. Leaving Leia and Heath to glower at each other, Han followed him.

"So apparently the plan is that I'm going to deal with the Imperial and you and, uh, Kesia are going to move my ship," Han said to him. "You know anything about flying?"

"Of course," Ty assured him. "I have my own ship. Though I can't wait to try flying a freighter!"

"Don't get too excited, Kid," Han warned him. "You're not flying far. And you should plan on copiloting—my ship can be a little temperamental and Kesia's been around her a lot. She should be able to deal with the main controls without crashing. That way you can navigate."

"Sounds good!" Ty still had a grin on his face. "And thanks."

"Don't mention it," Han mumbled, heading back out to where Heath and Leia were arguing about a particular phrase in his speech. "Hey," he interrupted. "I'm out. We meet back here."

"At 1200 at the latest," Leia confirmed. "If the Imp gives you any trouble, get back in touch and let us know you're going to be late. Otherwise we'll assume…"

"You'll assume what?"

"Nothing good," Leia said, her tone a bit gentler. "Good luck."

"You take care of my girl."

"Will do," Ty piped up, smiling at Leia.

"Thanks, Kid, but I was talking to her." Han pointed with his thumb at Leia as he checked his concealed blaster, and then slipped out the door.

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"Hey!"

"What the..." Han whirled around, knocking loudly into one of the storage bins in the alley behind the hotel. His hand inched down towards his blaster as he saw the source of the voice, decked out in the uniform of a hotel custodian. For a moment he weighed the ethics of just stunning the unfortunate man, but a closer look revealed that it was not in fact a custodian, but rather Fejj Smap, looking decidedly un-reporter-like in pinstriped coveralls and a matching cap.

"Do I even want to know?" Han sighed as Fejj ducked down next to him.

"What I'm doing, you mean? This is really all your fault," Fejj said to him, more amiably than his words would suggest.

"You get fired from the paper?"

"No, I'm on assignment. My editor was getting pissed that I didn't have the Starncorp story filed, but I promised her something even bigger if she'd give me an extension." Han looked alarmed. "Don't worry, I'm not going to blow anyone's cover right now. I'm just doing some more investigating of that Imperial. I called in some favors…"

"For that?" Han said skeptically, looking askance at the uniform. "What kind of favors?"

"I made friends with some of the cleaning staff several months back when I did an expose on the management's efforts to block them from forming a union," Fejj responded. "One of them let me have his shift today—he's assigned to our friend's floor."

"Really?" Han couldn't believe his luck. "So you have a legitimate excuse for going in?"

"I do," Fejj said. "Why? You need something?"

Suddenly Han was suspicious. "What's it going to cost me, Fejj?"

"An exclusive interview. With you and Kesia."

"Nuh uh. Sorry, buddy—that would be good for no one."

"I just want the background," Fejj pleaded. "I care as much about keeping the Empire out of here as you do—probably more. I wouldn't publish anything that risked their attention."

"So what is it that you want?" Han asked quizzically.

"Just the inside dirt on Carrella. Why she brought in outside consultants, what her campaign is like…"

Han grimaced. He was going to get it from Leia if he agreed to any of Fejj's demands, but at the same time, it was critical that he keep the Imp from discovering Leia's identity and Fejj had the key for an easy swipe. "Fine. Now let's get in there."

"You're coming with me?" Fejj raised his eyebrows. "I'm not sure…"

"I don't care what you think," Han said. "We can't screw this up. You go in first and give me a wave if it's all clear."

They rode the service elevator in silence. Han could tell Fejj was nervous, even though he'd clearly been planning an illicit search of the Imps room even before Han showed up. There was no time to offer encouragement though as they reached their floor and Han ducked into an alcove, watching as Fejj made his way down the hall.

He heard the door open and close, and held his breath, counting to ten before peeking back out. Fejj's hand popped out of the door, beckoning him in.

"Okay, I'll clean and you search," Fejj said. "What are you looking for?"

"Not entirely certain," Han admitted. "Maybe an envelope or a paper or something, probably with some hair in it?"

"I'll keep an eye out," Fejj responded, flipping through some papers on the bedside table before straightening the covers and pillows.

The Imperial was clearly cautious about his belongings. A file folder sat on the desk, held together with a combination lock. Han started there, expertly breaking in and flipping through the files but finding little besides information on the markets and production centers for various elements. He shut and locked the case back up, methodically going through the desk drawers. The only thing inside was a binder with a local restaurant directory and map to the hotel's fire escapes. Sighing quietly, Han put that back too.

"Where could it be?" he said under his breath. He looked around for any other likely spots around the tidy room before turning to the closet. He slid the door open, finding a neat rack of stiffly pressed jackets and trousers and began rummaging through the pockets.

A noise at the door made both of them jump. Someone had inserted a key card and was fumbling with the handle. Panicked, Fejj waved at Han to hide in the closet as he scurried into the 'fresher room with a bucket of rags and cleaning supplies.

"Good morning, sir," he heard Fejj call brightly. "Just finishing up your room. I'll be done in a few moments."

"That'll be enough," the Imperial said. "Don't mind the rest."

"Are you certain, sir? I haven't finished the 'fresher."

"Yes. Thank you." Han slid further back into the closet, pressing himself into a side wall and arranging the pants back in front of him as silently as possible. As he did, an envelope fell out of one of the pockets. Han shoved under his jacket to muffle the noise and slid his finger across to open it, soundlessly cheering his small victory as a few locks of curly blonde hair fell out. He shoved the hair into one pocket and folded the envelope into another as he strained to hear what was going on.

The door opened and closed, the sound of Fejj's stammering disappearing as the lock clicked shut. Han held his breath, his fingers on his blaster. If he had to shoot the guy at this point, he thought rapidly, he'd have to make it look like a robbery. If only he'd thought to wear gloves. The Imperial's footsteps got closer. Han pressed back further into the closet.

There was a clicking sound as the locked file folder opened, and Han could hear papers shuffling and the sound of a pen scratching. He shut his eyes for a moment, hoping to give his hearing an edge over his other senses as he noticed the distinct tones of a comlink dialing.

"Are the samples ready for comparison?" the main said crisply. "We're close to falling behind on our timeline. All right, good. Get them over to Starncorp by the end of the day. Let me know when you're headed over. I want to supervise the analysis personally. I don't trust that Starn woman." With a beep, he cut off the connection. He walked over towards the bed and activated the internal hotel comm. "Room service, please." Han groaned inwardly. Now he'd be here forever. "I beg your pardon? Closed?" Han's eyebrows shot up in glee. The kitchen was closed. "When will it open? Very well." With a loud sigh, the Imperial closed the connection and opened the desk drawer. Han could tell he was flipping through something, and then heard him mumble, "What sort of backwater planet doesn't have Chandrilan?" Finally he closed the desk drawer, and with an enormous sigh of relief, Han heard him walk out the door.

He was planning to count to five hundred to give the Imp time to clear out, but was saved from the wasted time by the reappearance of Fejj, who burst in a moment later and flung open the closet. "Did he see you?"

"Nope. And I found what I was looking for." Han stepped quickly into the 'fresher unit and pulled the small bit of hair from his pocket, dropping it in the toilet and flushing. "There. Mission accomplished."

"Good. Now let's get out of here." Han followed Fejj into the hall, checking quickly to make sure they were alone.

"You want to come back to Ty's with me," Han asked, not sure what else to do with the reporter at the moment.

"Thanks, but I'm busy," Fejj replied.

"Doing what?"

He gestured down the hall. "I told you, I took a custodial shift. These rooms won't clean themselves." He paused hopefully. "Want to help?"

"Thanks, but no thanks." Han tipped a pretend cap and walked quickly back to the service elevator. "Have fun."


	12. Chapter 12

"You should tell Heath about this later," Leia said as she ducked into the trunk of Ty's speeder. "He'll appreciate the irony."

"Yeah, he mentioned your little encounter," Ty responded with a laugh. "He doesn't have the world's best sense of humor, but I love him anyways."

Leia smiled back at him. It was so refreshing to see two people in love without the desperate cloud of sudden death hanging over them. She'd been witness to plenty of blossoming relationships in the Rebellion, but so many of them seemed born out of a need to have someone to remember you when you were gone more than true affection. And now that they were stationed on Hoth, she suspected plenty of the late night trysts were motivated by a desire to keep warm than any deep emotional attraction.

"Let's get going," she said, settling into her hiding spot. "We've got a lot to do before 1200." Ty nodded and shut the trunk with a bang, Leia tapping twice in their prearranged code to let him know she was fine. He slipped into the driver's seat and pulled out of the garage under his building, setting course for the spaceport.

It wasn't a long drive, but Ty kept the air conditioning blasting so Leia wouldn't get too stuffy during their journey. The trunk was pitch black, but she could hear the muffled music over the car's sound system. A loud bleep abruptly cut off the jazzy melody.

"Ty Starn here," she overheard him say. The speeder must have a built in comlink, she thought admiringly.

"Darling, it's me." Carrella's musical voice was unmistakable. "Where are you? I called the office and they said you hadn't been in yet today."

"I had some errands to run," Ty said coolly. "I'll be in a bit later. Are you there now?"

He's good, thought Leia with a grin.

"No, dear, I'm with Eri at the campaign headquarters. Trying to salvage what we can of the mess." She sighed dramatically. "I was hoping I might take you to dinner this evening. At Cardanel's?"

"That sounds lovely, Mother. What time?"

"I'll make the reservation for 1800. See you there, darling." The connection clicked off and the music started up again.

They reached the edge of downtown and Ty turned onto the gently curving road leading to the private side of the spaceport. Lying on her back, perpendicular to the movement of the speeder, Leia grew slightly queasy as she slid back and forth across the trunk with each acceleration. Taking a deep breath, she reminded herself they would arrive soon and concentrated on the instructions Han had given her for starting the Falcon.

Within a few minutes, they had pulled to a stop. She heard Ty open his door, and a moment later fresh air and light flooded her compartment.

"I parked away from the other speeders," Ty whispered as he helped her out. "We should be able to move out without anyone seeing us."

"You have the code for getting into the hangar?" Leia confirmed as she pulled a hood over her distinctive curly blonde locks.

"Yup. Let's get going."

They walked casually through the garage arm in arm, grateful for the late morning lull in speeder traffic. Stepping outside, Ty glanced down at the ground, leaning in towards Leia's ear.

"Security cameras," he mouthed. "I forgot about those. I'm not very good at this cloak-and-dagger stuff."

"It's okay," she murmured. "If we do this right, no one will mention anything to security that will give them a reason to check the cameras." She squeezed Ty's hand reassuringly. "You're doing fine."

They hung close to the wall as they made their way to the Falcon's hangar. Leia noticed Ty was sweating and stepped ahead to lead the way. Having the young man panic at this point would be useful to no one.

"Here we are," she said finally, gesturing to the massive door that enclosed the locked hangar. Ty inputted the code next to the pedestrian entrance, letting out his breath in relief as the door popped open.

The Falcon sat undisturbed as they had left her in the hangar, though Leia hurriedly walked around the perimeter of the ship doing a quick visual inspection for any tracking devices or other sabotage. Seeing nothing that piqued her concern, she typed in the entry code and led Ty up the gangplank.

"Wow." His earlier anxiety forgotten, Ty stopped as he reached the door and looked around. "This is amazing."

Leia couldn't help but laugh. "This piece of….no, wait. Don't tell him I said that."

"Corellian engineering is the best," Ty told her adamantly. "I'd love to have a Corellian ship."

"Well, maybe someday you will. In the meantime, shall we get moving?"

They settled into the cockpit, Ty doing a double take when he saw the size of the modified copilot's chair. "Who usually flies with Sas?" he asked incredulously, "This thing is gigantic."

"Someone taller than me," Leia said dryly, carefully repeating the startup sequence in her head before beginning to push buttons and move levers.

"I'll say. Let me know when you're ready to have me transmit the code to open the ceiling hatch." Leia nodded, concentrating on her work.

The Falcon hummed to life, much to Leia's surprise and delight, and she double checked the repulsorlift readout before nodding to Ty. "Go ahead." He punched in a code and sunlight flooded the hangar.

"I can't believe what a beautiful day it's turning out to be," Ty said conversationally as Leia gently lifted them out of the hangar. "Usually this time of year it just rains and rains and rains."

"I've noticed," she said, her voice tight with nerves. She'd flown ships before, to be sure, and had even taken the helm of the Falcon on occasion, but flying without Han was a new experience. "Can you see if you can make adjustment to our rear lift? I feel like we're sinking a bit back there." Ty fiddled with a knob and the ship subtly righted itself. "Thanks."

"So you need to head north. It's only about 40 klicks, on the other side of that lake." He pointed out the viewport at an expanse of shimmering blue water straight ahead. Leia gently pointed the ship in the indicated direction, holding in a small squeal as the Falcon jerked forward. She pulled back slightly on the throttle, lifting them upwards. "You're doing fine," Ty added with a smile.

"Thanks. You could tell I was nervous?" Leia asked.

"A little." He gestured down at her hands, which were gripping the controls so tightly that her knuckles had been drained of color. "We're almost there."

"You want to try landing us?" Leia asked, seeing how hungrily Ty was looking at the controls. "We don't need to tell Sas."

"You mean it?" A wide grin lit up Ty's face. "That would be fantastic."

"Sure." She hit a button, shifting control to the copilot's display. "She's all yours."

Ty pulled the Falcon into a celebratory dip, skimming the treetops as they approached his lake house. "This is so awesome!" he cried. Slowing them to a near stop, he hovered over the small hangar attached to the house. "Here we…uh oh."

"What?" Leia looked at him, alarmed.

"I didn't think of that. I don't think we're going to fit."

"Is there another spot we can land?"

"Not right here. Too many trees. We're going to have to head a bit further north."

"Where will that put us?"

"On the outskirts of Trelm. It transitions to fields there- we should be able to find a clear spot."

"We can't do that," Leia said firmly. "Trelm is crawling with Imperials."

"Well, staying up in the sky isn't a good idea either, and if we get too far afield we'll never make it back to Ecerm. We can stay away from the mining site."

Leia rubbed her eyes, knowing she had to trust Ty. He knew the terrain around here, and they needed to get the Falcon back on the ground before they attracted unwanted attention. Still, she wasn't happy with the deviation. "Okay. Just keep us as close as possible to our original destination. I assume we'll be walking back to your cabin for transport?"

"Yeah," Ty admitted. "But if it makes it up to you, I keep my really nice speeder there."

"Not really," Leia replied, "But that's all right. Let's just get down."

They glided over the low hills surrounding the lake, watching as the trees thinned and shrank into a sparse collection of copses and clearings. Finally Ty spotted an area big enough for the freighter, and pulled the throttle to a sudden stop, dropping them neatly into the small field.

"How was my landing?" he asked expectantly. Leia, her teeth still rattling from the shocking stop, gave him an annoyed look.

"It could use some work. Let's get going."

Leia knew Han kept camouflage netting in a storage bin on the Falcon, but decided there was a small enough risk of problematic aerial surveillance that she could skip that step for now. She ran the cool down sequence and then dashed into the back storage area, helping herself to a pair of spare blasters. "Just in case," she told Ty, who was watching her anxiously. "Here." She held out a blaster, but he shook his head.

"I've never used one," he told her. "Mother doesn't like weapons."

"Your mother carries a blaster," Leia said incredulously. "How can she say she doesn't like weapons?"

"Hers is just for self-defense. I can't imagine her ever using it unless she absolutely had to."

Leia didn't respond. Ty was already betraying his mother with his actions, and there was no need to demonize her further. "Fine, I'll hang onto them. Let's get going—how long do you think it'll take to get back to the lake house?"

"Not long," Ty assured her. "Maybe an hour, if we move fast?"

Leia checked her chrono. "That doesn't give us much time to get you back to the office to change those records. Let's get moving."

The sunny day made the walk pleasantly warm, and soon Leia was sweating under her jacket. She stripped it off and tied it around her waist, picking up her pace to keep up with her long legged companion. He was perspiring too, and she wished they had thought to grab water.

"What happened to your arm?" Ty asked out of nowhere, panting. Leia looked down, wondering if she'd somehow hurt herself on the hike without knowing it, and realized he was looking at the oddly shaped red marks that still trailed up and down her inner arm above the visible blue veins more than two years after Vader had inflicted them.

Pushing her arms tightly against her body, she muttered, "Just birthmarks." Ty sensed her discomfort and changed the subject.

"I haven't gone hiking around here in a few years. I used to come out with Mother when I was little and we would camp. She was dating a guy at the time who owned an outdoor store chain, so we always had these amazing gadgets to play with—fire starters and water purifiers, and self-adjusting star maps. I was heartbroken when they stopped seeing each other. Mother only told me recently that it was because he was cheating on her."

"It must have been hard growing up with a single mother," Leia said kindly.

"In some ways," Ty agreed. "But we always had each other. That's a lot of why I haven't mentioned that I'm seeing someone yet—not just because it's Heath, but because she always freaks out when I do anything that makes her think I'm flying the coop. She's a bit overprotective."

"Do you see yourself always staying with Starncorp?"

"It's been the expectation from day one, so I've never really thought of doing anything else. And the company's success means that I have enough resources to pursue my hobbies. It's not a bad life."

Leia chuckled, thinking that most people across the galaxy would likely agree that being the well-to-do son of a corporate empress was indeed not a bad life. "What sort of hobbies?"

"I do love flying. I have my own little ship, but it really can't get much further than Sorm. It doesn't have a hyperdrive or anything." He paused for a moment. "I still like the outdoors, too. When this campaign stuff is all over, Heath and I are going to do some backpacking."

Leia breathed in the fresh air, scented with the spicy aroma of dried leaves. "That does sound nice."

"How about you? Do you have any hobbies?"

"Not really," Leia said thoughtfully. "Work takes up all my time and more these days. I did use to love camping though."

"Can you sneak away for a bit, from, uh, work? Go home, do some camping? Surely they can spare you for a little while."

"No," Leia shook her head sadly, "I'm afraid that's not possible."

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Han knocked on the door to Ty's penthouse gently, stepping inside as Heath let him in after a moment.

"How did it go?" he asked. Han grinned.

"Ran into your friend Fejj. He was very helpful."

"What was he doing there?" Heath wondered.

"Said he's still working on his big story," Han explained. "He was all dressed up like a janitor."

Heath sighed. "That big story was supposed to already be out, and it was supposed to propel me into the lead in this election. I don't understand what he's doing."

"My impression is that he's thinking bigger than this little political spat you've got going on," Han responded irritably. "He actually seems to get the stakes here."

"Are you implying that I don't?" Heath asked testily.

"No, I'm saying it outright. You've been pissed this whole time, and don't try to tell me that it's because you got shot. It's because you're suddenly not the center of the universe, and you hate that."

Heath looked at him stonily, leaving Han to wonder whether or not he'd better shut up before he risked Heath backing out on their whole plan. He decided to shift tactics. "What Fejj understands is that if you go through with this as planned, you could save a lot of lives. That'll make you a bigger hero than just being some junior politician on a backwater planet who gets to rail on the holo every time he loses a vote to save some trees. It would be helpful if you could understand that too."

"I just don't understand why I'm the only one being asked to make sacrifices," Heath moaned dramatically, slumping onto the sofa.

"You're kidding me, right? Do you have any idea what she's…no, never mind."

"What?" Heath asked curiously.

"I'm not blowing our cover to prove a point to you, Heath," Han said finally, "But hear this: if you ever imply to Kesia's face that she hasn't made sacrifices, I will personally rearrange your internal organs. Got it?" Heath nodded sullenly. "Good. Now why don't you go practice that nice speech she wrote for you? They'll be back soon."

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Leia and Ty crouched behind a thick flowering shrub, peering through the dense leaves at the lake house. An unfamiliar speeder was parked out front, and they could see movement through the windows.

"I have no idea who that could be," Ty whispered nervously. "What do we do?"

"Does anyone else have keys?" Leia responded. "It doesn't look like anyone is trying to be clandestine."

"Only my mother," Ty responded, "And that's not her speeder."

"Could she have given them to someone?"

"Maybe."

Leia took a deep breath. "I think our only option is for you to go in and confront whomever it is."

"Alone?" Ty gulped.

"If it's someone your mother invited, it wouldn't do us any good for you to be seen with me," Leia explained. "I'll cover you if there's any trouble. And Ty," she pulled him down to her eye level. "If you have the opportunity to take the speeder and get back to town, just do it. Don't worry about me—I can hide out for a while and you can send someone back to pick me up."

"Are you sure?" Ty whispered back, "Your…well, Sas said to take of you."

"He was talking about the ship, remember? Now go before we lose any more time," she instructed him. "I'm a big girl, I'll be fine."

With some trepidation, Ty stood and walked slowly towards the front door of the house. Leia took one of the blasters out, aiming it at the door as Ty approached. He paused with a finger in front of the doorbell and then changed his mind, removing a set of keys from his pocket and letting himself in.

She heard a raised voice from inside the house. The shout was returned and then the conversation settled. She could see the shadows behind the window moving slowly, but nothing looked particularly threatening. After a moment, two men emerged and got into the strange speeder, pulling away down the road. Leia let out a sigh of relief but stayed concealed as she awaited the all clear from Ty.

As the speeder disappeared in the distance, Ty poked his head out of the door and waved at Leia. She stood and hustled towards the lake house when a rustling in the trees on the side of the house caught her attention. Freezing, she turned slowly, trying to keep the horror off her face as a man in Imperial fatigues spotted her and headed in her direction.

"Who are you?" he barked, quickening his pace and setting down the fishing rod that he clutched in his right hand. "Where are Nace and Bardo?"

Thinking quickly, Leia stammered, "I don't know. I was lost in the woods. I thought someone might be home and able to help me."

Looking at her critically, the man drew closer. "You were lost in the woods, you say? You wouldn't happen to be part of that little group that was trying to sabotage the mining operation, would you?" He snatched her by the wrist and then noticed Ty. "Who the hell are you?"

"This is my house," Ty said firmly. "I should be asking that question of you."

"We're renting this house from the owner," the Imperial said patronizingly. "If that was in fact you, I'd expect you'd be aware of it."

"Apparently not," Ty said, matching the man's tone. "Now why don't you let that young lady go before I contact the authorities?"

The man looked more closely at Leia, brushing a stray clump of hair out of her face with his free hand. "You look familiar, missy. What's your name?"

"Tarima DeSpett," she said quickly, "I don't think I've met you."

He lifted her chin, looking closely into her eyes. "That's impossible," he muttered, forcing her head to the side for a better look. "I'd swear you were Le…"

He never got the rest out. Leia reached into her belt, yanking out the concealed blaster and firing directly at his chest.

"Huh," she said to Ty, who was staring at the spectacle in mesmerized horror. "It was set on stun." She thought for a moment. "Help me get him over by the shore."

Ty lifted the man by his shoulders as Leia took his feet and they dragged him down to the lakeshore. Flopping him onto the course sand, Leia ran back for his fishing pole and forced his fingers around it. "Ty, maybe you should go inside for a minute now," she said quietly.

"Why?" he asked, stretching.

"Just trust me. I'll be along in a minute."

Shrugging, Ty trotted inside obediently. Leia looked over her shoulder, thankful that he wasn't watching her next move. The Imperial recognized her, and she had to keep him from sharing what he learned. The point blank stun blast would incapacitate him for a while, and then all traces of the electrical stimulation that froze his muscles would disappear. She just hoped it would last long enough.

With a grunt, she flipped the man onto his stomach and then dragged him towards the water. Finding a likely looking algae covered rock, she positioned him face down in front of it as though he'd slipped while fishing, and then went back to erase the telltale marks of a dragged body from the sand. Her hands shook as she left him there, trying to keep the question of how long it would take the depressed systems of a stunned body to suffer the fatal effects of anoxia out of her mind. She'd killed plenty of people in the last few years, some of whom she'd looked directly in the eyes before firing the fatal shot. But this bloodless murder—for there was no other legitimate description, she thought- felt different. She knew it was necessary, but it would still haunt her for a long time. Just something else to add to the never ending list of horrors that now comprised her life.


	13. Chapter 13

"What did those men say when you went in?" Leia asked curiously as they pulled away from Ty's lake house. The speeder was indeed luxurious, as he promised, with individual climate control and a sound system that almost lived up to the opera performance that began as he started the engine.

"As I expected, Mother had told them they could use the house," Ty said glumly. "They're project managers for the exploration crew." He sighed. "She always told me that it was mine to do with as I pleased, but I guess she was hoping I wouldn't find out. She's going to be furious when she finds out that I kicked them out—she doesn't like it when she doesn't get her way."

"I noticed that," Leia said with a small smile. "I guess we better hope they don't go tattle on you quite yet. Though we should think of a reason why you'd go to the lake house just in case she asks."

"I'll think of something," Ty assured her. Then his face grew grim. "What happened with that other man?"

"I took care of him," Leia said flatly. "He won't be a problem."

Ty accepted her statement, accurately reading from her tone that she was uninterested in further discussion. They drove on in silence for a little while.

Leia trailed her fingers over the speeder's fine leather fittings, musing about how similar her life could have been to Ty's if Alderaan had been as isolated as Retacy. Surrounded by her every desire and still feeling somewhat empty, but accepting her destiny as part of her duty to family and heritage. It wasn't fair of her to judge Ty for his inability to appreciate what he had: she hadn't appreciated her own privileges either, before they were blown to infinity in a hellish blast of green laser light. How funny to be jealous of ignorance, she thought.

"I don't know if we have time to swing back to my place before I go to the office," Ty said, breaking the quiet. "Do you want to hide in the trunk again? I don't know if we have any better options."

"What if I hop out on the edge of town and walk back?" Leia suggested, not relishing being crammed into the tiny compartment for however long it would take Ty to alter the records. "That should be safe enough, right?"

"I don't know…," Ty responded hesitantly. "I think it might be better if we stuck together." Leia prepared to argue, then noticed how pale the young man was. The near miss with the Imperials had clearly shaken him more than she initially realized.

"Okay," she agreed softly. "Pull over when we get close to town and I'll hop in." She patted him gently on the knee. "We're in this together."

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Han checked his chrono before resuming his pacing across the room.

"Will you be still for a minute?" Heath snapped at him. "You're driving me insane."

"Aren't you supposed to be going to your campaign HQ?" Han muttered.

"I was hoping to check in with Ty before I go," Heath told him. "You did say they'd be back soon."

"Maybe they got delayed," Han grumbled. He looked again at the chrono.

"Do you think something happened?" Heath joined Han in looking out the window, suddenly sounding more worried.

"I hope not." Han rubbed his temples. Then he cleared his throat. "I'm sure they're fine. Kesia's a tough little bird. Nothing has taken her down yet."

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After double checking that the occupant of his speeder's trunk was well through a roughly coded series of taps, Ty walked calmly over to the lift and punched the number for his floor. It was a work day, and the office was buzzing as he walked in, nodding politely to the secretary before heading straight back to his office. He didn't want to speak to anyone, afraid that his voice would give away the sheer terror that was eating him alive. He closed his door, double checking the lock, and then logged into the computer.

As the scion of a planetary corporate empire, Ty had been exposed early and often to new technologies, and had demonstrated both talent and interest in computer programming that his mother encouraged as a gateway to the mathematics skills he would need as a successful businessman. In his limited free time, Ty now worked with the Starncorp IT department on a number of projects intended to boost both security and productivity. His favorite pastime was red-teaming the newest network innovations, and it was to his current advantage that he had yet to complete his report on their most recent intrusion tracking upgrade. The new security mechanisms were intended to keep hackers out of Starncorp's financial records, and Ty had discovered a few flaws that would need to be patched. But since those holes still existed, they provided him with the perfect opportunity to access and modify the technical readouts that would allow miners to positively identify the raw materials that were dug out of Starncorp's holdings across the planet without any risk of someone finding his tracks later.

He took a deep breath, finding the appropriate database and opening it through a backdoor access portal. The specifications were organized by element, which was easy enough to understand, but when he opened one of the files a perplexing array of numbers and measurements filled the screen, making him wish he'd paid far more attention in chemistry and physics. "How much do these need to be changed by to make a difference?" he mumbled despairingly, opening another file for reference. It would take him hours to figure this out.

His comm system buzzed, making him nearly jump out of his chair. "Mr. Starn?" His secretary's voice was clear and unsuspicious. "A Mr. Arthor on the line to speak with you?"

"Have him leave a message," Ty choked out. "And please hold all my calls for a few minutes."

"Certainly, Mr. Starn." She signed off.

Finally he decided to just muddle things as best as he could. He knew terrellium was the main target, so he copied the readouts from the pliable metal known as bierzite and pasted them into the terrellium file. A few more clicks, a quick double check to erase any trace of his entrance into the system, and he was done.

"That's it," he said aloud, wiping sweat from his forehead.

"Sorry, Mr. Starn, what's that?"

Damnit! He'd forgotten to close off his end of the comlink with his secretary. "Oh, sorry, Sheran. That's it, you can transfer my calls again." He stood up and stretched, opening the office door and grabbing a blazer he kept hung over a coat hook. "Actually, scratch that. I'm off to a meeting."

"Yes, Mr. Starn. Also, Ms. Starn reminded me that you're scheduled for dinner at 1800 tonight."

"Thanks, Sheran." Fighting to keep a poker face, he hurried towards the elevator.

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Leia had turned off her comm just in case it went off as someone was walking by, and was passing time by silently reciting ancient speeches that she'd been required to memorize in grade school. A few times she held her breath at passing footsteps, but no one stopped nearby. She very nearly drifted off to sleep when the faint sounds of an argument caught her attention.

"We can't let him go through with this. I know that horrible woman is behind it," a female voice said, her pitch high with fury.

"But this is not the way to deal with that! He's made the decision and we have to stand with him. It's the only way now." The other party was a man, sounding young and weary.

"I am not going to just roll over and accept it! We're so close, why can't he just try?"

"I'm sure he has his reasons."

"Yes," said the woman as the voices got closer, "And I'm completely sure those reasons have something to do with Carrella Starn threatening him. Heath would never make a decision like this out of thin air."

Leia grimaced. She'd anticipated that the Our Retacy activists would be happy about Heath's supposed decision to step out of the race, but if these two caused a ruckus at the Starncorp headquarters, the storyline she was hoping for might get overshadowed. Thinking quickly, she pulled the emergency handle that popped open the trunk door, shut it behind her, and hurried after them.

Taking a deep breath, she thanked the Force that the two young people hadn't been at Heath's campaign office the night she'd shown up right before the police raid, and sidled up as they waited for the elevator.

"Excuse me," she said sweetly. "Aren't you with the Dolmin campaign? I heard what happened- such a shame."

As she hoped, they whirled around, eyes flashing as they recognized her. "You- you're one of her…stooges, aren't you?" the woman spat out.

"I understand you must be upset," Leia continued, hoping her patronizing tone would have the desired effect. "You all have worked very hard."

"Corporations are never going to run this planet," the man added. "The people are going to see right through your little charade."

"My charade?" Leia said, sounding offended. "How is it a charade to be more concerned about creating jobs than spending the day hugging trees and drinking dirt tea?" She flipped her hair haughtily. "Now if you'll excuse me, I have a meeting to get to."

"Yeah, with your corporate overlords," the woman hissed. "Max, you have that camera?"

"I do," the man confirmed.

"If you've got nothing to hide," the woman simpered, "Then it shouldn't bother you if we follow along."

Leia put on a face that projected confidence underlaid by nerves. "It's a free planet. Do what you want." She stalked off out of the garage, letting out a small sigh of relief when the two activists followed her, recording her every move.

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Ty tapped twice on the trunk, and then, hearing no response, repeated the signal. His breathing got shallow as he wondered whether his companion might have suffocated. In a panic, he opened the hatch, simultaneously relieved that she wasn't laying there dead and panicked that she wasn't laying there at all. "Now what?" Frantic, he dialed Heath's comm code. "Are you still at my place?" he gasped when Heath answered.

"Yes. Where are you? We've been expecting you back!"

"Just leaving the office. Is Kesia there?" Ty heard the sound of a slight scuffle, and then another voice came on.

"She's supposed to be with you. What do you mean is she here?" It was Sas, and he sounded remarkably peeved at the turn of events.

"I left her in the speeder," Ty whispered defensively. "When I came back, she was gone."

"Okay, Kid, don't panic. Was there any sign that she left against her will?"

"I don't think so."

"Then she probably had a reason," he said, adding under his breath, "And it better have been a good one." He took a deep breath. "You come back here and we'll try comming her while you're on the way, okay?"

"Okay," Ty agreed raggedly.

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Leia led her pursuers on a march through downtown Ecerm, trying to walk quickly enough that they would have to struggle to keep up but not so quickly that she would attract unwanted attention. A few passersby looked askance as they dodged the camera toting youths, but thankfully seemed to pay her little mind.

"We're not going to get tired of this, you know!" the girl taunted as Leia swiftly turned a corner, jumping aside as she nearly plowed into a neat line of preschoolers marching down the sidewalk clinging tightly to loops on a long rope.

"Sorry," she said to the teacher as she continued along. Her path seemed convoluted, but her plan to move them farther away from both Starncorp and Dolmin's headquarters was working. Now she had to start thinking of an end game before she was stuck in an infinite game of tag.

She whipped out her comlink, remembering suddenly that it was turned off and hoping there weren't a dozen pissed off messages from Han demanding her whereabouts. They had already gotten a late start at Starncorp, and while she hadn't had time to check her chrono, she was sure that they were passed the meeting time. She was going to hear about this.

As she expected, there were messages but she opted to wait until later to listen to Han rant. Instead, she punched in his code, interrupting him as he was about to launch into a lecture. "It's me. I'm afraid I'm going to be a bit delayed to our meeting. Ran into some complications. Would it be possible to send a speeder to pick me up?" She gave a sickly sweet smile to the camera, which was recording her every word. "Yes, I'm on the corner of Sixth and Ladari Avenue. See you in a minute."

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"That's clear on the other side of downtown," Heath told Han. "What the hell is she doing there?"

"No idea, but I'm not hanging around to guess." He started towards the door.

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Ty maneuvered his speeder through the midday traffic, his stomach in knots. There was no good reason to think so, but his imagination convinced him that Kesia's disappearance had something to do with his sabotage. The whole situation had progressed far beyond his expectations in just a few short days. What he thought would be a subtle effort to undermine his mother's political machinations to bring in Imperial business had turned into a whirlwind of espionage, kidnapping, and even murder, if his suspicions about Kesia's dealings with the Imperial at the lake house were true. And the one person who might be able to make the whole thing better was the target of his efforts—Carrella might never forgive him if she found out.

Out of the corner of his eye, Ty noticed a slight disturbance near the corner. Pulling up to a traffic signal, he saw two youths dressed in the virtual uniform of unwashed cargo pants and faded "Our Retacy" t-shirts. A longer glance revealed that they were harassing a young woman who held her hand up to avoid their camera lens.

"Kesia!" he called out in relief. She looked up and scurried over to the speeder, dodging traffic as she hopped in next to him. "What happened?"

She gave the two activists a small wave as they pulled away. "They were going to come up to the office and make a scene," she explained briefly, panting from her exertion. "I got them to chase me instead."

"You could have been seen!" Ty told her as he sped towards home. "What if someone had caught you?"

"Who would have caught me?" she responded calmly. "I'm not wanted by the police, and there don't seem to be any Imperials in town."

"What about Mother? What if you'd run into her?"

"What would she do on the street in broad daylight?" Leia shrugged. "It's okay, Ty. Calm down. Did you get the records changed?"

"Yes, but I am not going to just calm down. This is getting ridiculous. Kesia, you killed someone!"

"An Imperial," she responded coldly. "I told you that I'm with the Alliance. That's what we do." Then, feeling guilty, she shook her head. "I'm sorry, Ty. That's not what I meant. He recognized me, that Imperial. If he had reported that I was here, every man, woman, and child on this planet could be forfeit."

Ty took a deep breath and looked over at her. "You don't look like a dangerous criminal to me."

"If it makes you feel better, I'm not actually a dangerous criminal," Leia told him with a small smile. "I'm just someone who's trying to do the right thing in a dangerous galaxy." She rubbed his shoulder reassuringly. "I'm sorry you're in the middle of this. But your efforts could save a lot of lives. I hope you understand that." He nodded silently.

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"Leia, where in the nine hells of Corellia are you?" Han muttered as he whipped in front of a delivery freighter, earning a honk and a crude gesture in his efforts to circle the block again in search of the missing Princess. "Sixth and Ladari, you told me. That's right here." He screeched to a stop outside a tall building, looking up the steps to see if she'd disappeared inside a lobby. Nothing. Turning back to get into the speeder, he paused to let a woman pass by on the sidewalk, freezing as she looked up at him and they both gasped in recognition.

It was Carrella Starn.


	14. Chapter 14

Carrella pressed close to Han, edging up the staircase so she could get nose to nose with the seething pilot.

"I should have you arrested," she hissed.

"And I should punch you in the face," Han responded with equal disdain. "Lucky for you I don't hit ladies."

"How dare you threaten me after what you've done," she retorted, "You burglarize my office…"

"Now wait a second here, sister!" Han noticed a ginger-haired young man carefully observing the exchange from a few feet away, his comlink out. "What, you don't want your buddy here to know that you trashed your own office?"

"That's preposterous!" Carrella looked over at Eri, who hesitated a moment before joining them. "Eri, this…." Realizing her voice had reached a pitch that was starting to attract unwanted attention from the pedestrians drifting down the sidewalk, she took a calming breath and forced herself into a more professional demeanor. "This gentleman-" she spat out the word sarcastically—"Is a companion of our erstwhile consultant Kesia Harwano. He may know her current whereabouts, assuming you're still interested in pressing charges against her."

Han rolled his eyes. The young man was obviously embarrassed. "What'd she do, beat you up?"

"I'll have you know she assaulted him when we discovered her subterfuge," Carrella said haughtily.

"Maybe it's better just to let it go," Eri said, his face still red. "The election is only a few days away, and that would dominate the media cycle. Voters don't like drama—they aren't going to want a legislator who gets in fights in her office."

Han was strongly considering just walking away, given that Carrella's little friend seemed hellbent on getting her out of this very public argument. But he couldn't risk disappearing just to have Leia show up waiting for him to pull around with a speeder. The chance that Carrella would call in the Imperial goons for backup was too high. He decided to try a different tactic.

"You know, Carrella, I think you and Kesia may have just had a big misunderstanding. She still wants to help you, you know?" He looked at her meaningfully.

"Why don't you tell me where she is and we can talk about it in person then?" Carrella responded icily.

"I have a feeling she wouldn't be comfortable with that at the moment," Han told her. "But I do know she's got something big in the works to help you out, if you let her."

"What's that?" interrupted Eri, intrigued.

"You'll find out later today." Han grinned. "But only if you trust me and carry on with whatever it was you were doing."

"Trust you?" Eri looked disgusted. "You expect us to believe that this big surprise won't be a scandal that Kesia manufactured while she had access to our files?"

Carrella stared at Han for a moment. "All right," she said finally. "Eri, let's go."

The youth looked at her in dismay. "I agree we need to keep on schedule but aren't you at least a little bit concerned?"

Carrella shook her head with a tight smile. "No, he's right. Kesia has personal reasons for wanting me to win this election."

"I thought you said she was a plant from Our Retacy!"

"I said I suspected it. I'm willing to see this out—we don't have much other choice." She reached out a hand, raising her eyebrows until Han gripped it in a limp shake. "I'll look forward to this little surprise. Come along, Eri." Quickly they descended the staircase and disappeared down the block.

Han let out a ragged breath and looked down at his comlink. Making sure they were gone, he quickly punched in Leia's code.

"Where the hell are you?" he growled as soon as she answered.

"With Ty." She sounded surprised at his tone. "Where are you?"

"I came to pick you up, as requested," he said tightly, "Would have been nice if you were actually here."

"Oh!" She paused for a moment, and then continued, sounding genuinely contrite. "I thought you had sent Ty. I just hopped in when he drove by."

"No matter. Just meet back at the rendezvous. Probably good you weren't here anyways."

"Why is that?" Leia was suspicious.

"Ran into our, uh, friend."

"Carrella?"

"Bingo."

"What did she do?"

"First she threatened to have me arrested," Han said with a small chuckle. "Then she tried to convince this little red headed twerp with her—"

"Eri," Leia interrupted. "Her campaign manager."

"—that you and I had somehow conspired to sell her out to Our Retacy. Ironic, huh?"

"Sas!" she said sharply as he remembered that she was with Ty, who could probably hear the whole conversation and wouldn't find the irony so amusing.

"Anyways, I got her to go away by telling her that you were still in her court and that she should expect something big this afternoon." He braced himself, expecting a lecture about not giving away their plans, but Leia was quiet.

"I guess that's a silver lining," she said finally. "I was wondering if there would be a way to prep the Starn campaign for Heath's announcement. Did you give her the details?"

"No, just warned her that there was something coming down the pike," he said.

"Okay. See you at the rendezvous."

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"Dolmin is having a press conference in twenty minutes," Eri said ominously, looking at the message he'd just received.

"That little bitch!" Carrella kicked the side of the desk, leaving a neat indentation that matched the point of her shoe. "You were right, she did sell us out."

"You were confident that she had a reason to support you even after your falling out," Eri reminded her. "Anything you can tell me about?"

Carrella smiled fondly at him, but her eyes still flashed with rage. "It's something personal, dear. And it looks like I may have been wrong." She sighed deeply. "Go to the press conference. It'll be good to have someone there so we know what to expect right away. Don't answer any questions unless you have to though. I'll be here." She turned on the small holoprojector in the corner.

Eri nodded, grabbing his jacket and heading out the door. The event was outside Dolmin's campaign headquarters, and he could get there just in time if he hurried.

As he expected, reporters from all the major outlets were already set up outside the building when he arrived. Dolmin's supporters were gathered around the base of the stairs leading up to the building, and microphones had been placed at a small podium at the top. Eri nodded briskly to Fejj Smap, who returned Eri's greeting with a grim smile.

Aside from the reporters, who were salivating over the prospect of a juicy twist so close to the election, the rest of the crowd looked glum. Eri was surprised: he thought they should be ecstatic over any bit of news that would embarrass their chief rival. Their murmurs died down as Heath walked out of the building, giving a small wave to his supporters before stepping up to the microphone.

"The pursuit of public office is an important choice," he began, "One that carries with it an implicit willingness to place stewardship of the public trust above all else. It is because of my strong commitment to the integrity of our democracy that I must announce I am withdrawing my candidacy from this race…"

Eri gasped, his reaction muffled by the sudden hubbub from the gathered press. A fair number of reporters turned towards their cameras, ignoring the remainder of the speech in order to frantically summarize the breaking news for their anchors. He tried to shrink back as Heath kept talking, understanding that Carrella's best strategy at this point was to lay as low as possible. But Heath spotted him, his eyes blazing with a hostility that belied his next statement.

"Protection of our precious natural resources remains my top priority, and I intend to continue my efforts as an advocate and an activist," Dolmin continued. "It is because of her own strong interests in strengthening environmental protections that I would like to encourage my supporters—and all voters—to make Carrella Starn our next representative."

The reporters began hammering him with questions, but Heath ignored them, holding up his hands for quiet. He gestured to Eri, waving at him to come up to the stage. Eri shook his head wildly, but as attention turned to him he grudgingly acquiesced.

"I'd like to introduce Eri, Carrella Starn's campaign manager," Heath said. "He's here at my invitation to talk to anyone who wants to volunteer." The reporters' altered their aim, throwing questions at Eri, who looked like a trapped animal. "Again, thank you all for coming today."

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"Poor Eri," Leia crooned as she sat on Ty's couch, watching the proceedings. "He's just misguided. He didn't deserve that."

"Heath never forgave him for going to work for my mother," Ty explained as the newschannel went back to the studio, the headline "Dolmin drops out, endorses Starn," blaring across the bottom amid promises of analysis after the commercial break. "He got his start as one of those annoying canvassers for Retacy Green, but I think he always knew it was better to work in the system than outside of it."

"Which is often, but not always, the case," Leia added. "Sometimes governments create systems that become impossible to work within."

"We're not debating about the Empire, sweetheart," Han said, "Can't you just give it a rest for a little while?"

Leia glared at him but kept quiet as she watched the early reporting on Heath's announcement. As she had hoped, the reporters focused on his endorsement of Carrella, and even managed to snag a video of one young activist in an Our Retacy shirt stating eagerly, "If her environmental record is good enough for Heath, that's enough for me."

"Ugh," Ty winced. "He's going to hate that."

"So now what?" Han stretched. "We've altered long standing physical records of basic elements, committed breaking and entering, destroyed evidence, and manipulated elections, and it's not even 1600 hours yet."

"All in a day's work," quipped Leia.

"I'm supposed to meet my mother for dinner at 1800," Ty told them. "I guess you all should stay here, out of sight."

"Works for me." Han settled back onto the leather sofa and began flipping through holochannels until he found a sports network. "Got a liquor cabinet?"

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Carrella walked briskly through the Starncorp lobby, smiling at the few remaining staff. "Everyone should go home, enjoy this lovely day," she said, patting the receptionist on the shoulder. The woman glanced out at the dreary sky swollen with the promise of rain and shrugged. She wasn't going to complain about leaving half an hour early.

The last straggler stepped into the elevator, and as the door closed Carrella walked warily out of her office, settling herself in the lobby. Captain Matur and his engineers were due any minute.

Precisely at 1700, her comlink buzzed. "I'll let you in," she said briskly, pressing a button that unlocked access to their floor. She stood smiling as the captain walked in, flanked by two young men with ramrod postures and severe military haircuts.

"May I get you some water or coffee?" she asked pleasantly as they stepped in. Matur shook his head.

"No, thank you. We'd like to get started in the lab if you could show us in."

"Of course." Carrella led them through a glass door and down a long hallway, punching in a code that unlocked a heavily sealed door with a hiss of air. "I presume your men know how to operate these machines?"

"Yes, ma'am," one of the engineers spoke up. He was holding a heavy metal case that Carrella assumed held the samples found in the Trelm region. "We'll take it from here." They went inside and shut the door in Carrella's face.

Checking her chrono, Carrella wondered exactly how long the test process would take. She'd timed her dinner with her son to ensure that he was on his way to the restaurant while the Imperials were here, and thus wouldn't accidentally stumble on her clandestine meeting. She knew she'd be a bit late, but she was hungry and eager to see Ty. Hopefully this wouldn't take too long.

She walked over a few times to see if she could hear anything interesting in the lab, but the door was tightly sealed. Bored, she decided to head back to her office and see how the most recent surprise was shaking up her race. The local news outlets were sure to do polls following Dolmin's stunning announcement, and she held her breath to see if she was coasting to a victory yet.

She gritted her teeth when the first thing she saw was a statement from her remaining rival. Morrs had used Dolmin's endorsement to try to paint Carrella as out of touch with business interests. There were no polls yet.

A sharp rap at her door brought her to her feet, and she stood to escort Captain Matur into the office. He pulled the door shut behind him.

"I am afraid to report, madam, that our findings are not likely to support a mining partnership between your company and the Empire," he said bluntly, not sitting down.

Carrella stared at him silently for a moment, shocked. "I beg your pardon?"

"The samples we extracted are not useful for our needs," he explained.

"But…it's pure terrellium!"

"Your own analysis machines show differently, madam. I'm afraid that it appears the terrellium reserves have been tapped."

"That's impossible!" Carrella got to her feet. "There has to be some mistake!"

"Unless there is a problem with the machines you use for analysis," Matur said, turning to look at the artwork on the wall, "Though that would imply that the mineral resources you have been selling have been counterfeit for some time."

Offended, Carrella walked around her desk to address the Imperial. "How dare you imply that I've been committing fraud!" She poked her finger into his face to punctuate her exclamation and he stepped back.

"Madam, calm yourself," he muttered.

"What about the rebel?" she asked suddenly. "Were you able to identify her?"

Matur paused a moment, hoping his embarrassment at accidentally losing the sample Carrella had provided didn't show. The last thing he needed was to give this uppity woman something to hold over his head. "She didn't appear in any of our databases. I assume she's some rank and file member—they'd send no one important to a place like…" He scrunched his nose, as if the word himself disgusted him, "Retacy."

"That can't be!" Carrella fumed. "This is all a conspiracy! She's someone important, I know it!"

"Madam!" Matur reached out to grab at Carrella and force her to sit down, but she jumped away quickly, whipping a blaster out of her desk drawer and pointing it at him.

"You're a liar!" she shrieked. "You're doing this to cheat me!"

"Put that down," Matur ordered her firmly. He watched carefully as her finger moved on the trigger.

Trained on Carida, Matur was nothing if not a fast draw. And unlike many of his fellow officers, he always kept his blaster on the highest setting.

The bolt sizzled through Carrella Starn's neck. She dropped her weapon, a small gasp of air escaping from her lips before she fell to the floor, dead.

Matur nudged her once with his boot before stepping neatly out of the door, collecting the two engineers. "Contact our teams and have them prepare for departure," he said briskly. "There's nothing for us here."

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It was an hour past their meeting time, and Ty sipped at his wine, trying not to get worried. Nowadays his mother was always late, but she typically called if it would be more than thirty minutes. He checked his comlink, wondering if there was a problem with reception, and then waved the maître d' over. "Were there any calls for me?" he asked quietly. The man shook his head.

A few minutes later, Ty looked up as a somber looking pair of police officers came through the door and spoke quietly with the host. They looked over at Ty, and his heart dropped. Had they discovered the rebels in his apartment? Had something happened to Heath?

"Sir?" One of the officers, a woman, was kneeling beside him, asking him to follow her out of the busy restaurant. The other patrons stared as Ty walked stonefaced past the tables. They stepped outside and the officers both turned to him, removing their hats. "I regret to say, Mr. Starn, that your mother was found shot in her office this evening."

Ty couldn't breathe. "Wh…what?" He shook his head to clear his thoughts. "Where is she?"

"I'm afraid she's died, sir."

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"Oh, kriff." Han blanched as the smashball game was suddenly interrupted by a shaken looking local reporter, standing in front of the Starncorp building. Police tape blocked the entrance and officers and detectives scurried around, trying to avoid cameras and curious onlookers. "Leia! Get in here!"

Leia dashed out of the bathroom, clad in nothing but a bathrobe and her hair wrapped in a towel. "What?" He pointed at the holoproj.

"This evening, a custodian found the body of noted businesswoman and political candidate Carrella Starn in her office at the headquarters of her company, Starncorp." Leia gasped, her hand going to her mouth. "Starn had been shot, but police are not speculating at this time whether the shot was self-inflicted or the result of foul play. An investigator speaking on the condition of anonymity tells us that a blaster was found near the body when it was discovered…."

"I'd bet the Falcon that it was that Imp," Han said grimly.

"You must be sure of that then." Leia took a shuddering breath. "Poor Ty."

"Do you think we should stay here?" Han asked quickly, "What if the Imps go after him next?"

"I don't think they believe he has any connection to this," Leia told him. "And what is he going to think if his mother gets murdered and we disappear?"

"How is what Ty Starn thinks more important than keeping you away from the Imperials?" Han demanded.

"Keeping us away from the Imperials," she corrected. "It's not like you're on the Most Wanted List because they're hoping for an autograph and a photo."

"Fine, whatever. The point is, do we need to get out of here?"

Leia put her head in her hands, groaning slightly. "I don't know. What happens when a candidate dies? Are they still going to hold the election?"

Han stood up, yanking Leia to her feet. "Will you stop worrying about that stupid election for once? Us getting arrested is not going to help our buddies get a working ion cannon, you know?" Still holding onto her arm, he peeked out the front door. The hallway was silent. "C'mon."

"Where are we going?" She tried to yank her arm away but Han kept a death grip. "Do you even have a plan?"

"I'll make a plan when we have time for a plan, sweetheart," Han told her, heading for the freight elevator. He tapped his foot impatiently as it crawled towards their floor, then sighed wearily when it opened, revealing two bedraggled men.

"Ty! Are you all right?" Leia cried, reaching out a hand to touch his shoulder. Heath swatted her away, leading Ty out of the elevator and down the hall towards his apartment. Ignoring Han's protests, Leia peeled Han's arm off her shoulder and followed them.

She slid inside just as Heath was depositing Ty on the sofa. He looked at her with horror.

"Did you do it?" Heath asked quietly.

"No!" Leia knelt in front of Ty. "Gods, Ty, no, of course it wasn't me. How could you think that?"

"He told me that you killed an Imperial officer," Heath responded, edging between her and Ty. "Was Carrella next on your hit list?"

"Why don't you watch it," Han grumbled, letting himself in the unlocked door. "She had nothing to do with it. That Imperial captain she was dealing with had an appointment with her this afternoon. I overheard him talking about it when I was in his room." He saw the blank look in Ty's eyes, amplified by unshed tears, and softened his tone. "The Imperials can be pretty cold when it comes to getting what they want."

"So it's my fault," Ty hiccupped, "They must have been angry about the samples not matching up."

"No!" Leia pushed Heath out of the way, grabbing Ty's hands. "Ty, it is not your fault. They wouldn't have killed her over that. Something else must have happened. Don't blame yourself—this is no one's responsibility but the Empire's." Han watched her as she spoke, wondering if she truly believed her own words. Ty's shoulders sagged and he clung to Heath, weeping openly.

Han watched Leia as she straightened her shoulders and started to speak, then thought better of it and led Han into the bedroom, allowing Ty and Heath some privacy.

"You were going to ask about the election," Han stated as she shut the door.

"You know me well," she responded flatly. "He just didn't seem like he wanted to think about it right now."

"That's how normal people behave," Han muttered, then mentally kicked himself, hoping Leia hadn't heard his jibe. If she had, she showed no sign and instead grabbed Ty's portable computer from the bedside table, opening a link to a news station.

"Hm," she said. "Interesting."

"What's that?" Han glanced over her shoulder, reading the headline aloud: "Starn murder investigation: what's next for the legislative race?"

"It says that under Retacy law, if a candidate dies within a week of the election date, their next of kin assumes their candidacy," Leia said. "So….Ty."


	15. Chapter 15

Waiting patiently in the bedroom for a sign that Ty was ready for more company, Han and Leia heard the beeping of a comlink out in the main room. Ty answered, his voice too low to discern through the closed door. As he signed off, they heard another ragged sob and decided the time had come to emerge.

Heath and Ty were standing in the middle of the room, embracing as Ty wept.

"Did you know about this?" Heath asked Leia pointedly.

"About what?" She was frustrated that they were still lashing out at her over Carrella's death, but decided to let it go in the interest of being respectful to Ty.

"That was Eri on the comm—apparently it's so close to the election that Ty is supposed to take Carrella's place on the ballot."

"I can't," hiccupped Ty. "I can't do it."

Leia froze. If Ty wouldn't step in, the election would be thrown into disarray—possibly delaying the legislature's vote on terrellium trade even further. But they could hardly demand that the grieving young man take on his mother's race under the circumstances.

"Can I talk to Ty privately?" she asked finally. Ty looked at her with red rimmed eyes, and she gave him what she hoped was a comforting smile.

"Is that all right?" Heath asked. Ty nodded, sighing deeply. "Okay. We'll just be in the next room."

Leia took Ty's hand and led him to the sofa, fetching him a glass of water from the kitchen before settling in next to him. "I lost my parents not too long ago," she said quietly. "I know how hard it is. Even when you're an adult, you suddenly feel like the ground has been ripped out from underneath you."

Ty wiped his eyes with the back of his hand. "Like your whole world is gone," he added.

Leia stared straight ahead for a moment, trying to focus on her goal. "Yeah. Exactly."

"What happened to your parents?" Ty asked.

"They were killed by the Empire."

"Oh. I'm sorry."

"Thanks." Leia patted his knee. "Look, Ty, in my line of work, I think too often we find ourselves dealing in absolutes when it comes to people. Good or evil. But that really isn't accurate, or fair. When I found out that your mother was trying to establish trade with the Empire, my first inclination was to see it as an act of evil." Ty turned to her with an appalled look on his face. "But let me finish. I was wrong to think that. I still disagreed with her, but she did it because she cared about the success of her company, and because she cared about you. She wanted nothing more than you to be a success in life, and that was her way of doing it. It wasn't evil, and I'm sorry I thought it was. She loved you very, very much."

Ty choked back a response, tears flowing freely again.

"And yes, I became involved in this campaign because of the impact on terrellium trade. But your mother believed in some important things, and I'm convinced that she would have made a positive difference for Retacy if she had been elected."

Sighing, Ty folded his hands in his lap and looked down at his fingers, refusing to catch her gaze.

"Whether you want to take up the mantle of this campaign or not is your choice, Ty," Leia concluded. "But if you choose to go for it, I'll be right here with you, and not just because of the terrellium. The galaxy needs people in government who really care, and I think you would make a great addition to the legislature."

"But I'm so young," he stated softly. "Most of the legislators are my mother's age…well, what was her age…" He pressed a fist to his forehead, fighting tears.

"That doesn't matter, Ty," Leia smiled. "New blood is always good for a political body. You'd be surprised how well it can work."

"How would you know?" he asked sullenly.

"Can you keep a secret? Even from Heath? At least for now?" This was her trump card—it had better work.

Intrigued, Ty nodded. "Okay."

"My name isn't really Kesia Harwano," she said. "It's Leia Organa. I was the youngest person ever elected to the Imperial Senate, just a few years ago."

Ty may have been from a backwater planet, but he was also a businessman and kept abreast of galactic news. His eyes widened as he recognized her name. "Holy…"

"Ty, it's important that you don't tell anyone," she said firmly. "For your own safety. But please, consider running. The Alliance desperately needs access to terrellium and right now you're our best hope."

"Okay," he said quietly, "Let's do it."

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Fejj Smap glared at a smartly dressed reporter who pushed ungraciously past him to settle her cameraman at the ideal angle outside the late Carrella Starn's campaign office. The crowd of media was attracting attention from the passing traffic, which slowed to a crawl as drivers tried to spy the cause of the fracas. He rolled his eyes as the woman rechecked her hair and makeup, comforting himself with the knowledge that he had an inside track on the major announcement that was to be made shortly by the Starn campaign. Of course, no one was going to be truly surprised that Ty Starn was going to step into the role vacated by his mother—as was allowed by Retacy law—but he already had the lede for his story written. His editor promised a special edition of the paper if—and only if—he could get some good exclusives out of this event, so he peeked around, hoping to find his friend Sas in the crowd and call in his favor.

After a few minutes, a somber looking Ty Starn stepped out onto the podium, clutching a handful of notecards and flanked by Carrella Starn's campaign staff.

"Thank you all for coming on such short notice," Ty began. Fejj noticed that his public speaking skills had improved dramatically since he'd last seen him giving a talk to a group of young investors at the university. "This is a bittersweet day for me. My mother dedicated her life to Retacy, speaking out for improvements in our educational system and sweeping changes to our investments in technology and innovation. Her dream was to be a voice for those who felt disenfranchised or disenchanted, to fight for a government that was productive and efficient and fair. That dream ended only a few days ago, and today I am humbled to honor her memory by taking her place in this legislative race…."

Nice speech, Fejj thought appreciatively. Not for the first time, he wondered where in the galaxy they had dug up that consultant. He knew she was affiliated with the Rebel Alliance, but she was obviously no ordinary freedom fighter, not with those wordsmithing skills.

A light rain kicked in as Ty completed his short remarks, and Eri stepped forward at the end to ask that the press please respect the bereaved by holding their questions until later that day. Out of the corner of his eye, Fejj thought he spotted a familiar mess of blonde curls on the edge of the crowd, but by the time he fought his way through the cameras and cables she was gone.

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Han and Leia took their time getting back to Ty's penthouse, following a circuitous route that led them to a narrow park running through the center of downtown. Flanked by tall buildings, the huge trees looked comically small, but provided a soothing green canopy that was a welcome distraction from the acres of concrete that comprised the rest of the city. Unconvinced that the Imperial threat was as minimal as Leia claimed, Han hovered close to her. For the first few minutes she tried to create some space between then, two-stepping awkwardly to the right and left as he followed her every move with a smirk on his face. Finally she gave up, settling next to him and trying to keep her face placid so he wouldn't know that he'd won this round.

"How did you get him to do it?" Han asked quietly as Leia stopped to admire a sweetly scented flower bush, the petals shimmering under a sheen of raindrops.

"You really want to know?" Leia asked with a sigh. Han perked up, sensing the princess was about to tell him something she wasn't proud of.

"Yeah, I do."

"I told him who I am."

"What?" That, he wasn't expecting. "Are you crazy? After all this you just give up our cover!" He was shouting, and caught the attention of another couple strolling leisurely through the park. They looked at him, and then at Leia, with concern, and he smiled abashedly and lowered his voice. "You're going to get us, and him, killed."

"He knows the risks. I told him he couldn't even tell Heath…"

"And you trusted him? You are FAR too trusting, your highnessness, you know that?"

Without a word, Leia turned and slapped him, catching him hard on the chin. "Don't you ever say that to me again," she hissed. She took a deep breath. "I know what I'm doing."

Han rubbed the spot where she had struck him, simultaneously wondering how he'd managed to set her off so badly and marveling at how hard she could hit. "I'm just trying to do what I'm being paid to do, princess." He began walking more quickly in the direction of Ty's apartment. "When is this damn election again?"

"The day after tomorrow," Leia responded coolly. "Which you would have known if you didn't spend the whole time here ordering room service and watching smashball."

"Yeah, that's all I've been doing. Oh, and saving your ass more than once."

Leia glared at him. "I guess that means I don't have to ask Rieekan to dock your pay when we get back."

"You do and I'll take it out of your food and fuel budget. You feel like walking back?"

"Just shut up."

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"Oh, for goddess sake." They had come to the edge of Ty's building and found the front sidewalk packed with news crews. Leia made a face and walked briskly away, hoping they hadn't yet discovered the freight entrance.

They escaped in through the backdoor and rode the elevator in silence, still fuming over their earlier argument. As they reached the top floor, Han stopped Leia from stepping out first, preceding her into the hallway and checking for any threats before allowing her out.

Han knocked on Ty's door, cringing when he saw Heath sitting with the now-ubiquitous reporter at the kitchen table. Fejj had a voice recorder out and was chatting with Ty while Heath threw in occasional commentary.

Han leaned over to Leia and whispered in her ear as they took off their jackets. "There's something I should tell you."

"What?" She didn't sound happy.

"That reporter, Fejj, he helped me get into the Imp's hotel room."

"And what did you promise him in return?" Leia wasn't fooled for a second.

"An exclusive interview with you."

"Oh. I see."

Fejj grinned as Han and Leia joined them at the table. "Ty was finally giving me an interview," he announced gleefully. "This story is going to be huge."

Leia looked at Ty with some alarm, and he reassured her with a tiny shake of his head. He wasn't going to spill her secret.

"And do you want to tell her what we decided?" Heath asked. He gave Leia a look that suddenly made her feel very, very nervous. Ty looked down at the table, not wanting to meet Leia's eye.

"What?" she demanded.

Heath smiled. "Ty has decided that when the issue of the mineral trade freeze comes to a vote, he is going to block any further trade and mining of Retacy's natural resources."


	16. Chapter 16

Han held his breath, knowing this was one of those moments where Leia was either going to revert to her diplomatic training and hold her tongue, or explode like a thermal detonator with a loose pin. He had learned the hard way that Leia was much more dangerous in the former scenario.

"Interesting," she responded calmly. Han winced. "It sounds like you all had a good discussion about this issue."

"We did, thank you," Heath crowed. "I know it's disappointing for you, but surely you understand that we can't allow further degradation of Retacy's natural resources."

"Of course," Leia said simply. "Have you told the shareholders as well?"

"What?" asked Heath. Ty drummed his fingers on the table as Fejj took out a fresh piece of paper, looking eager. Heath gave the reporter a withering look. "Can this be off the record, for goodness sake?"

"Starncorp is a public company," Leia continued, sending a silent thank you to the Rebel advance team that had compiled her dossier. They at least had the wits to put that information in. "I can't imagine that the shareholders will be thrilled to know that the new president's first act is to cast a vote that undermines the health of the company." She smiled sweetly at Ty, trying not to outwardly display any of the guilt she felt for baiting the recently bereaved man. "Though I'm sure Our Retacy will be happy."

"This has nothing to do with Our Retacy!" Heath said firmly. "It's a decision for the good of the planet."

"Somehow I can't imagine that's how your board will see it once your relationship comes to light," Leia said. "Choosing love over professional duty usually only plays well in the holovids."

"Is she always like this?" Heath asked Han. He shrugged, enjoying watching someone else be the target of Leia's slow burning ire and not wanting to get involved. She was moving in for the kill and he had no interest in being collateral damage. Not getting an answer, Heath turned back to Leia. "So you're telling me it's going to be a scandal because he's taking a vote that isn't corrupt?"

"Just being realistic here, Heath. He acts in the interest of the company, everyone shrugs and you can move to the next priority. He acts against the interest of the company, and both of you end up flipping nerf burgers at the local greasy spoon. Don't think this won't hit you as well. Is Our Retacy going to be thrilled about how close you are with the head of Starncorp?"

"How is our relationship going to become public, may I ask?" Heath sneered. Leia leaned in close to him, a finger pointing at his face.

"You think your professional reputation matters a whit to me when my people are out there in danger of being killed because you're a selfish ass?" she hissed. "Ty, I don't relish doing any of this to you, I really don't, but I've learned the hard way that sometimes playing dirty is the only option."

Han grinned as Leia stood up, only towering over the three men because they remained sitting. When it wasn't directed at him, watching her get mean was oddly attractive.

Heath glared at Leia, who was looking at Ty with a mixture of hope and frustration. Suddenly he looked up at her, a slow grin spreading across his face.

"You know, I think I have a compromise," he said cheerfully. "What if we…"

He was interrupted by a thunderous knock on the front door.

"What the hell?" Han said, furrowing his brow as he pulled Leia towards the bedroom and shut the door. A moment later they heard a flurry of booted footsteps filling the entryway as Ty answered.

"Mr. Starn, I'm Detective Forb," said a deep voice. "We have reason to believe you may be in danger."

"In danger?" Ty responded incredulously.

"One of your mother's campaign staff was able to identify a possible suspect in your mother's murder," the detective said, giving little notice to either Heath or Fejj. Leia pressed her ear to the door, trying to better hear the conversation as Han held his blaster loosely in his right hand. "Someone matching her description was spotted not long ago near your building. Do you know Kesia Harwano?"

"Damn Eri!" Leia mouthed to Han. He pointed at the closet, expecting her to hide, but she shook her head. "It'll make noise," she whispered softly into his ear. "We need to get out of here."

Han glanced out the window, swiftly appraising the impossibility of dropping twelve stories from the penthouse undetected onto the busy street below. He shrugged, looking around the room for any other escape option. Unless they busted out the ceiling of the closet, which was sure to attract attention from the next room, they were stuck.

"I've met her briefly," Ty was telling the detective. "But why would Eri think she killed my mother?"

"Apparently they had a falling out and then Miss Harwano disappeared," the detective said. "Your mother ran into one of her associates the day she was killed and he made a cryptic reference to Miss Harwano's interest in your mother that her staffer later realized may have been a threat. We have a composite drawing of the associate as well…"

"I've not seen either of them," Ty said. Leia sighed quietly in relief. At least Ty wasn't planning to sell them out. "Shall I contact you if I do?"

"Call the emergency line right away," Detective Forb said firmly. "We'll put out an alert, and with your permission I'll station an officer here."

"I'm sure that won't be necessary," Ty said politely. "I'm running for elective office in my mother's place and I don't want to give off an image of being inaccessible…"

"We can have a plainsclothes…" Forb started.

"No, thank you, Detective." Ty was adamant. "The building has security, that's enough for now."

A few minutes of garbled negotiations and then Han and Leia could hear the police officers being escorted out. As someone pushed on the door handle, Han shoved Leia behind him, his blaster out.

"Guess it's a good thing you hid," Ty said, eying Han's weapon with trepidation.

"Care to tell us what that's all about?" Heath asked. "And don't try to wiggle out of this one. I don't think the shareholders are going to be too concerned with the rantings of someone on the most wanted list."

"Heath!" Ty's voice was uncharacteristically sharp. "She had nothing to do with my mother's death and you know it."

"Why are you taking her side?" Heath asked petulantly. "She strolls in her ready to ruin your life for her supposed cause, and you cover for her? She should be on her knees thanking you for not turning her over to the police."

"Maybe if you hadn't started taunting her about that stupid vote," Ty retorted.

"Stupid? You think protecting one of the last natural ecosystems on this continent is stupid?"

"If you had just heard me out rather than bullying me into promising to vote…"

"Gentlemen!" Leia's voice was sharp. "We don't have time for this. Ty, you have an election to win and I need to make it through the next few days without being arrested."

Fejj eagerly began taking notes again, grunting in surprise as Leia whipped the notepad away from him.

"What do you care if he wins?" Heath asked sullenly. "The only reason you wanted him in this race was so you could get your hands on our terrellium. And you're not going to."

"That's not exactly true," Ty interrupted. Heath gaped at him. "I told you I had an idea."

"Which is?" Leia crossed her arms impatiently.

"A felony," he said with a grin. "But I've read about politicians that were willing to act outside the law for the greater good…and I respect them." He looked at Fejj. "You can stay, but you have to promise you never heard a word of this."

The reporter shrugged. "Fair enough. But I still get my exclusive, right?"

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Election Day morning was foggy and cool. Ty left early for a rally outside his mother's former campaign office, leaving Leia, Han, and Heath to glare awkwardly at each other over their morning coffee. Han was especially grouchy after having spent the night on the floor of the guest bedroom: Leia hadn't taken kindly to his suggestion that they share the enormous bed, nor had she been willing to camp out on the hardwood. He at least had gotten a rare decent night's sleep once she put down her final draft of Ty's victory speech and passed out on the soft feather pillows.

"I want to be at Ty's victory event tonight," Leia said suddenly.

"Um, no." Han rolled his eyes at her. "Remember that whole wanted for murder thing?"

"And I don't see why you should get to be there when I can't," Heath grumbled.

"Because I engineered the whole victory, perhaps?" Leia said crisply.

"By throwing me under the bus." Heath took a deliberate sip of coffee and continued to glare at her. "You forget that part?"

"You never had a chance in hell of winning," she responded. "You should be thrilled about this outcome. Ty wins, and you have complete inside access to your representative." Han waggled his eyebrows suggestively, and Heath choked back a laugh. "Don't be crude. You know what I mean."

"Fair enough," Heath admitted. "But that doesn't mean I forgive you."

"You know," said Leia with a smile, "The Alliance could really use people with your passion and dedication."

"Run, buddy." Han leaned over and punched Heath lightly on the arm, glad that the tension in the room had been diffused. "Once she gets going, she's like a nek. She doesn't let go."

"Is that what happened to you?" Heath asked with a grin.

"Well, no. I'm just here for the money."

"Right." Heath laughed. "I've heard that before."

"If you're done insulting me, why don't we talk about how I can get to the victory event tonight," Leia said.

"Why don't we? Because you're not going? Your mission was to win this election and once that's done we are hightailing it out of her, sweetheart."

"If we're leaving, it shouldn't be a problem for me to go to the event, right?"

"Except that little part where you get arrested, identified, and shipped off to the Empire, leaving me down a paycheck."

Leia rolled her eyes. "I'm not going to go announce myself. I just want to pop into the back."

"Nope."

"You don't get to boss me around."

"I beg to differ. I'm in charge of security for this mission, and this distinctly falls under my jurisdiction. If you disagree, you can always take it up with the general when we get back."

Leia smiled smugly. "Or I'll just meet you at the ship when I'm ready to go."

"Will you excuse us?" Han asked Heath. Without waiting for an answer, he grabbed Leia by the wrist and dragged her into the guest bedroom, slamming the door behind him as she dug in her heels, trying to yank out of his grip. "Are you nuts?"

"Are you done manhandling me?" she responded, trying to twist away.

"Not until you answer my question. We are one day from being able to finish up this mission without anything worse than you being pinned for a murder you didn't commit happening, and you want to hand yourself over on a silver platter? What is your problem, Princess?"

She ripped her arm away, rubbing her wrist ostentatiously. "You wouldn't understand."

"Probably not. Because it's a stupid idea."

"If it was something you had worked on, you'd want to be up on stage with Ty," Leia grumbled.

"Is that what this is about? Recognition? Seriously?"

"I'm not allowed to feel proud of an accomplishment?"

"Princess," Han started with a sigh, "No offense, but this isn't really one of your top accomplishments. For one, I'd rank taking out the Death Star a little bit higher."

"That had very little to do with me," she responded quietly. "I know it's silly, but for the first time I feel like I accomplished something for the Alliance. I'd just like the chance to see it through in person."

Sighing, Han rubbed his forehead. Mistaking his reaction for frustration with her, Leia continued. "I'm not in a position to be an ace fighter pilot, or run impossible blockades like you. This is my strength—I know it seems boring, but it's what I've got."

"All right."

"What?" Leia thought she hadn't heard him correctly.

"I said all right. We'll go to Ty's thing, and then we are getting the hell out of here. No funny business—got it?"

Leia nodded. "Thank you," she said, her words catching in her throat. "Thank you for understanding, Han."

"Don't get me wrong, I still think you're nuts," he clarified. "But I think we can do this without a problem. We're going to need Heath's help though."

"Is that all? Maybe we should ask for Darth Vader's assistance instead?"

Han chuckled. "Leave this one to me."

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	17. Chapter 17

"Now I could get used to this look," Han said with a grin. Leia rolled her eyes, twirling around to look at herself in the bathroom mirror as her companion continued to chuckle.

She had straightened her hair, leaving it blonde but tying it back up in loose braids that formed a crown around her head. An Our Retacy t-shirt left little to the imagination in the vicinity of her bosom, as Heath had only been able to scrounge up one sized for a pre-teen boy. The denim miniskirt would have gotten her locked in her room as a teenager. Only her tall combat boots seemed remotely comfortable. Slipped a soft flannel man's shirt over her arms as a jacket, Leia grimaced. "Do you really think this will help me blend in?"

"It'd be better if you didn't take a shower for a week," Han responded, his voice raised enough to ensure that Heath could overhear him in the other room, "But I think this will be fine for now."

"Why don't you have to dress up?" Leia asked. Han shrugged.

"I'm not wanted for murder, for one."

"Not on this planet, anyways." Leia smirked at him. "I wouldn't go making any blanket statements."

"And remember," Han continued, ignoring her crack. "You stay next to me, in the back of the room, and if there is any sign of trouble we are getting out. And…" He punctuated his next sentence with a finger in her face. "I am not taking any responsibility for any trouble that does happen. When we get back, you are telling Rieekan this was your idea."

"I doubt he'd even consider another option."

"Good." Han stepped out of the bathroom, leaving her to finish her make up.

Heath was sitting on the sofa, flipping idly through channels on the holoprojector.

"Anything good on?" Han asked mildly, flopping down beside him.

"I'm looking to see if there's anything on the election yet," Heath responded, refusing to catch Han's eye. He paused on a news station that was replaying an interview with a self-styled analyst out of the local university. The man was busily opining on the impact of the Our Retacy endorsement of the Starn campaign, and arguing that while Carrella Starn and Heath Dolmin had overcome their differences, he anticipated the relationship with Ty Starn would be more difficult. Heath and Han both laughed, the man's bloviating clearing some of the tension out of the room.

"What's so funny?" asked Leia as she emerged from the bathroom. She gave Han a withering look as he flashed her a suggestive grin, his eyes focused squarely on her chest.

"The professor here is concerned about Ty and Heath," he said, gesturing at the set. "He says politics can get in the way of a beautiful relationship."

"Does he take anything seriously?" Heath asked Leia, changing the channel once again.

"Rarely," she told him, surprised that Heath was even speaking to her. Perhaps their imminent departure was improving his mood. "By the way, thanks for getting me these clothes. It really means a lot to me to come to the event tonight."

"Yeah," Heath said non-committally. "Well, I guess you earned it."

"What do you mean?" Leia asked, trying to disguise her pleased grin.

"Seriously?" Heath sighed loudly. "You're going to make me spell this out for you? After everything you did to me?"

"No," Leia said kindly, just as Han said "I want to know."

Heath shook his head. "I don't think Ty would be in a position to win if it weren't for you. There, I said it, okay?"

"Thank you, Heath," Leia said sincerely. "That means a lot to me. And when Ty does win tonight, it will have a lot to do with you, too. I hope you realize that."

Heath grunted. "Sure. Thanks."

"You're going to do great things, the two of you," she continued with a warm smile. "Now, shall we get going?"

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The ballroom was already crowded when Han, Leia, and Heath arrived. The environmental activist attracted the attention of Our Retacy supporters and reporters alike when they came in, giving Han and Leia a chance to melt back into the multitude as Heath basked in the attention. To Leia's relief, the Our Retacy representatives who had deigned to attend the victory party for their one-time rival were not those who had been in the campaign office the night she showed up bedraggled and dirty from her escape from Carrella, and didn't recognize her. She was less pleased to note that Han had been right, and, as he pointed out several times on the speeder ride over, her outfit meant she was drawing more attention to her breasts than to her face.

The polls closed at 1900 hours, and already a frisson of excitement was propagating through the crowd. Trying to peer around Han, Leia caught a glimpse of Eri on the platform at the front of the room, hunched over a computer. Certain that he was the one who accused her of Carrella's murder, Leia stepped back, grateful that her diminutive height kept her relatively invisible in the packed room.

Someone turned on a projector at the front of the room, and a plain graphic showing the candidate's names with a space for their vote percentage lit up the faces of the revelers in shades of green and red. Having helped work on election night graphics, Leia knew that the original display should have featured Carrella's smiling face. Though she had no love for the now-deceased politician herself, she felt a twinge of sorrow as she ruminated on how bittersweet this night would be for Ty.

"Just a few more minutes," an excited girl said next to them, bouncing up and down as she handed them both "Our Retacy" buttons. "I hear he's going to make a big announcement about the Natural Resources bill if he wins." Leia gave her a tight smile, taking the proffered button and pinning it to her shirt.

"He's going to come through on that, right?" Han whispered. "You don't think that's why Heath has been so nice all of a sudden."

"It's going to be fine," Leia whispered back. "Ty's idea is solid. It's going to work."

Demonstrating exactly why his mother had made him executive vice president of Starncorp at such an early age, Ty had excitedly shared his idea for a compromise between the Rebels and Heath after making the reporter Fejj Smap swear to complete secrecy. Ty told them all exactly how he had inserted the data for bierzite into the equivalent fields for terrellium, thus convincing the Imperials that there was little reason for them to continuing their mining work in the Trelm region. Bierzite, he explained, was a common element available on planets across the galaxy, and the market on Retacy for the soft metal had nearly bottomed out. Following the election, Ty would vote against allowing trade in terrellium, and then allow enough sampling from the Trelm river bed to collect the terrellium the Rebels needed. Using the Starncorp analysis, he would show the other companies with property holdings in the region that Trelm was useless for mining, offering to buy them out and then turning the region into a wildlife preserve. The "bierzite" samples would be sold to a ready buyer, namely, the Alliance, at a cut rate—cementing Ty's reputation for business acumen under difficult circumstances.

"Seems complicated," Han had said.

"It's brilliant," Leia had countered.

"And Trelm will be a preserve? You promise?" Heath had asked. Ty nodded at him with a wide smile.

"Are you sure you want to stay on Retacy?" Leia had added. "That sort of strategic thinking could be very useful to us."

Ty had reached out to hold Heath's hand, squeezing it tightly. "Retacy is home," he told her. "It may not be the bright center of the universe, but it's got everything I need."

She had patted their clasped hands fondly. "I understand. Now let's go win an election."

Background music was playing as they awaited the moment of truth, and Leia found herself tapping her foot to the lively beat. Han stood behind her, lightly placing his hands around her waist and shaking his hips along with her. He was pleasantly surprised when she began dancing a bit more rather than shaking him off, and gave her a quick twirl of celebration. She grinned.

A moment later, the lights dimmed and Eri stepped up to the microphone, his eyes red rimmed and tired but a wide smile on his face. "Ladies and gentlemen," he announced. "Our early results are in, and I am proud to say that all the major news outlets have called the race for our next legislator, Ty Starn!"

Han clapped his hands over his ears as the room exploded in whoops and cheers. Even the Our Retacy group, who had been relatively subdued in all matters not involving Heath Dolmin, applauded and joined in the chant of "Starn! Starn! Starn!" Leia beamed.

"You did it, your worship," Han said in her ear, giving her a quick hug. "Congratulations."

She had cautioned Ty to make his supporters wait for the victory speech until his opponent had conceded, and so as the party began in earnest, she began leading Han towards the back of the room. Their plan was to watch Ty's speech and then slip out, leaving their borrowed speeder in the spot where the Millennium Falcon waited to whisk them back to Hoth.

They backed up against the wall, noticing a door to a service hallway with a small round window looking into the ballroom. Han ushered Leia through, relieved as the door swung shut and muffled the dull roar of the celebrating crowd.

"We can wait here," he told her. "Those news cameras were surveying the crowd a little too much for my comfort."

"They were just panning for B-roll," she told him.

Han rolled his eyes at her. "I don't care if they were panning for gold. The last thing we need is your cute little mug all over the local news." He was right, and Leia didn't argue.

He stepped aside so she could peek through the porthole in the top of the door, though the only thing visible from her vantage point was a sea of heads. The stage was empty now, a photo of Ty and his mother with the words "Representative-elect Ty Starn" superimposed on the display screen.

Raised voices from down the hallway and around the corner caught their attention, and Leia pushed against the door, intending to step back inside until whoever else was using the service hallway passed. She grunted as the door didn't budge. "It's locked!" she whispered with a small amount of desperation in her voice.

"Lemme try," Han said as she stepped out of the way. He shoved against the door to no avail. "Hm. Guess we'll just tell whoever's coming that we got locked out?"

"The sound system on the stage was supposed to be portable!" the voice said, drawing closer. Leia's eyes widened in alarm. It was Eri.

"He'll recognize me," Leia hissed at Han. "We have to get out of here." Taking his hand, she pulled him in the direction opposite of Eri's approach, heading past a set of metal shelves and around another corner.

"Dammit, I'm locked in," they heard Eri mutter. "Who picked this venue anyways?" His footsteps got closer as he unknowingly followed their path around the perimeter of the ballroom. On tiptoes in hopes of silencing their footfalls, Han and Leia put on another burst of speed as they tried to keep ahead of the young campaign manager.

"Hey! What are you doing back here?" Leia and Han screeched to a stop as a police officer appeared in front of them. Leia's eyes grew wide.

"Um….looking for the 'fresher?" Han said casually.

"Right." The officer gave Leia an appraising look. "You kids aren't fooling anyone. We know what you did at that rally a few weeks back."

For a moment Han was utterly confused, then he remembered Leia's costume. The officer must think that Our Retacy was planning some sort of prank. He held his hands up in a gesture of surrender, then pulled the man aside.

"S'not what it looks like," he said, forcing a blush onto his face. "See, her boyfriend…well, ex-boyfriend, is with Our Retacy, and he showed up tonight. She and I were in the middle of something, and we came back here to, uh, find some privacy where he wouldn't make a scene, you know?"

The officer looked back at Leia, who was desperately trying to listen in on their conversation while keeping another ear out for Eri's approach. She was also a little worried about what Han was telling him, considering the suggestive looks that the smuggler kept throwing in her direction.

"This area's private," the officer said finally. "Why don't you get a room or something?" Leia blushed beet red, making Han laugh.

"Sorry 'bout that, officer," he said, taking her by the hand, "Can you help us find a way out?"

At that moment, an equally red faced Eri rounded the corner, continuing to shout into his comlink. With no other option, Leia grabbed Han, pulling him around her and yanking his head down to make it appear as though the couple was locked in a passionate embrace.

"I said get a room!" the officer bellowed, using a key to unlock a nearby door and pushing them back out into the crowd. Eri looked up with amusement at the scene in front of them, then his eyes narrowed as he looked directly at Leia. Spotting his expression, she barreled into the crowd with Han close behind.

"You have to stop her!" Eri shouted, forgetting his phone call as he spoke frantically to the officer. "That's the woman who killed Carrella Starn!"

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"'Scuse me, 'scuse me," Han said, pushing aside bodies at increasing levels of inebriation as he tried to keep close to Leia, who was deftly maneuvering through the crowd. Finally catching up to her, he grabbed her shoulder. "We're getting out of here!"

"They'll have the place surrounded," she muttered back. "Leaving right now will only get us arrested."

"Seems like someone suggested leaving a few hours ago," Han replied bitterly as Leia headed deeper into the crowd. She ignored him.

"Let's head back out into the service hallway and see if we can get out the way Eri came in," she suggested, guiding them back towards the original door.

"You don't think that hall's full of cops yet?" Han asked.

"Only one way to find out," she said dryly, pushing past a pair of Our Retacy volunteers with enormous knit hats to poke her head through the door. The hall was silent, and she slipped inside.

"Looks clear for now," Han said as he jumped ahead, checking around a corner. "Only problem is it's a dead end."

"Kriff." Leia joined him at the end of the hallway, which indeed concluded into a white wall lined with more metal shelving. "Wait, what's this?" She pointed at a thigh-height door built directly into the wall. Pulling on the round handle, Han bent over for a better look.

"A crawl space?" he ventured.

"Better than nothing- come on, flyboy." She got down on hands and knees and scurried through with Han in close pursuit. He pulled the door closed behind them, hoping they weren't again trapped in rat infested duct work.

The area was surprisingly spacious, and loud. The music from the ballroom rattled the walls and ceiling.

"I think we're under the stage," Leia said aloud, confident that the ambient noise would muffle her voice.

"Yeah," agreed Han. "So how do we get out of here?"

"I thought you were the strategist?" Leia teased, looking around for another door. She began to crawl over towards a line of light trickling through a crack in the wall when the music stopped.

"May I have everyone's attention?" It was Heath, directly above them. The stage floor was comprised of wood planks, and looking up, Leia could make out Heath's silhouette as he walked towards the podium. "My name is Heath Dolmin, and I'm the director of Our Retacy. Tomorrow morning, our legislature will reconvene to consider legislation that is absolutely critical to the future prosperity of our planet. Our Retacy has long advocated for conservation and careful stewardship of natural resources, and today I am excited to announce a new legislative partner in our endeavors. Without further ado, I want to introduce your next representative, Ty Starn!" With another burst of music, Heath stepped down from the podium and Ty walked out from behind some curtains, blushing at the cheers from the assembled crowd.

"Guess you'll be here for the speech after all," Han whispered to Leia, reaching over to pluck a dust bunny from her hair. "Though this isn't exactly the venue I was expecting." Leia turned around and put her hand over his mouth, shushing him.

"Thank you, Heath." Ty sounded poised. "Serving the people of Retacy is an honor and a privilege that was my mother's dream. She saw our potential as a planet and as a people and wanted nothing more than to ensure that our great future remained in reach for every child, everyone who dared to dream."

"Yeah, dream of handing over the planet to the Imps," Han mumbled.

"Her gift to me was the gift of passion, the gift of hope," continued Ty. "I will always mourn my mother, but I intend to honor her legacy by asking myself every day—what more can I do for Retacy?"

Leia pumped a fist happily in Ty's direction. His delivery of her speech was impeccable. She settled in to listen to the rest as Han noticed a small trapdoor that led onto the stage. They could hardly emerge right then, but as he saw Heath still standing above him, he began to formulate an idea.

"Our infrastructure needs and our environment should not be seen as competing priorities," Ty was saying now, "But rather as a manageable challenge that can offer us unique opportunities to find a way to balance conservation and progress."

"Psst," said Han, working one of his lock picking tools up through the crack between the planks underneath Heath's feet. He finally managed to poke Heath in the ankle, and the man looked down in surprise. Surprising Han with his quick thinking, he turned away from the audience and knelt, pretending to tie his shoe.

"Who's there?" he said softly, his voice melting into the reverberations from Ty's amplified speech.

"It's us," Han responded quietly. "We had some company. Can you get a crowd onto the stage? There's a door we can get out of but I don't want to just pop up and hand ourselves over?"

Heath grimaced. "Fine. But this is the last thing I'm doing for you. Wait til the speech is over."

Han turned back to Leia, who was listening rapturously to the conclusion of Ty's speech. "Get ready, Princess," he said, tugging on her leg for attention. She crawled over to him, giving him a puzzled look.

"Again, thank you for this great honor," Ty concluded. "I look forward to getting to work." The room erupted in applause, and Han saw Heath make his way back to the podium.

"I'd like to invite some people up who played an enormous role in this victory tonight," Heath said. "As you know, Our Retacy endorsed Carrella Starn the same day that she was tragically killed, and it was our privilege to offer that same endorsement to her son. Will the Our Retacy volunteer team please come to the stage?"

Leia snickered, imagining how pissed Eri would be that Heath was taking over the event as if Our Retacy had engineered the whole victory themselves rather than just showing up at a couple of rallies at the end. The poor kid had been totally manipulated by Carrella, she realized, but it was a good lesson to him to never let your guard down when it came to politics. A rumble of feet followed by the distinct smell of spicy incense mixed with body odor indicated that the Our Retacy volunteers had appeared on stage, and Han used the opportunity to push open the trap door, ignoring the murmurs of surprise as he and Leia crawled up in the middle of the group.

"Thank you for your hard work!" Heath said, gesturing for them to head off the stage. The volunteers began hugging each other and high-fiving. Han wriggled free from an older woman's enthusiastic embrace, but Leia clung inside of a group of girls as they meandered back down and towards the back, once again appreciating the benefits of being short. "Who's up for drinks?" she squealed, squeezing her new friends tighter as they cheered in support of her proposal and—to her relief—headed towards the door.

Police officers had surrounded the building as Han and Leia expected, but they paid little mind to the large group of activists pouring out of the doors. They had been instructed to watch for a lone man and woman, and most of them were damn sick of hippies at this point. As they made their way down the glistening sidewalk towards the closest dive, Leia expertly extracted herself from the cocoon of young woman and found Han. With one last glance back towards the building where Ty stood reveling in his new position, they disappeared into the darkness.

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"I wish you could have come. We could wear short sleeves!" Leia told Luke as she slurped a rapidly chilling cup of coffee. They sat at a small table at the edge of the mess hall, where Luke had just finished telling Leia about the modifications they were working on to the snow speeders. He was proud that they had managed to keep them operational during the day, but she detected a note of frustration as he mentioned that the sensors went completely haywire as the temperature dropped at night.

"It sounds like it was fun," Luke said with a grin. "And we were worried you and Han were going to kill each other."

"Who is we?" Leia asked, rubbing her hands together. Her body had gotten accustomed to the temperate climate on Retacy, and the return to Hoth was more difficult than she anticipated.

"Oh, you know…" Luke waved his hand around the room, refusing to name names. "Chewie. Some other guys."

"Right." Leia stood, suddenly annoyed. There were better things to do on this base than speculate about her interactions with Han Solo. "I'm headed to the main hangar. The shipment of terrellium is coming in from Retacy today."

"I'd go with you, but we've got sim time scheduled," Luke said. "I'll come find you later."

"Okay." Leia started to walk away, then turned to give him a quick hug. "I missed you, Luke."

"I missed you too. You and Han both. It's not as fun without you here."

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Leia was surprised to see Han waiting in the hangar as the freighter arrived from Retacy. The rear of the ship opened disgorging a collection of techs. They quickly offloaded a series of heavily sealed containers, heading directly for the lift into the ion cannon's maintenance area.

"Hope it works," he said to her as she joined him near the freighter's cockpit. "I'd hate to think of going through all that and still having a malfunctioning ion cannon."

"It wasn't that bad," she said to him crisply. "Admit it, you may have learned something."

"That's true." He grinned. "I learned that you can be a krakana when it comes to campaigns. Watch out."

She grimaced, and he gave her a gentle nudge. "I mean that as a compliment, your highnessness," he said. "You were pretty great."

"Thanks," Leia responded. She looked up as the captain of the freighter walked purposefully down towards them, waving a handful of flimsis.

"This is for you," she said, handing the papers to Leia. "For both of you. I was told you'd be interested."

Leia looked baffled, then peered at the papers. It was an old-fashioned newsprint.

"The Retacy Weekly Chronicle," Han said, taking it away from her and reading the main headline aloud. "In it to win it—the inside story of the Starn campaign, by Fejj Smap." He laughed. "Guess old Fejj managed to not get fired."

"Let me see," Leia said, snatching it away from him and flipping the paper open. "A political analyst, speaking on the condition of anonymity, noted that Carrella Starn's efforts to engage the environmental community could have been a liability, had the candidate not committed to follow up with meaningful legislation aimed at conservation efforts." She looked up. "A political analyst? I guess you could call me that."

Han took it back from her. "Another insider, also speaking off the record, argued that Starn would find a way to turn her new found interest in preserving native species into an asset for Starncorp." Laughing, he repeated. "An insider? I think I like the sound of that."

Leia peeked over his shoulder, skipping ahead to the end of the page. "With the still-unsolved death of Carrella Starn dominating talk in the business world, Starncorp's sudden move to acquire open space and designate the areas for preservation under the company's new president Ty Starn has gone relatively unnoticed in corporate circles. As may be expected for an industry leader thrust into the world of politics, Representative Starn did insert an amendment into the controversial legislation limiting off-planet resource sales that would increase tax deductions for companies following in Starncorp's footsteps and setting aside land for wildlife preserves. Starn elicited the support of one-time rival Heath Dolmin's group Our Retacy to endorse the legislation, effectively inoculating himself from criticism based on the impact to his company…"

"Do you think Ty will be okay?" Leia asked softly as she closed the paper.

"No," replied Han, "Not as long as he keeps that Heath guy around. What an asshole."

Leia laughed. "I think they make a good couple. Heath thinks he can bully Ty, but Ty has more tricks up his sleeve than people give him credit for."

"That reminds me…" Han said innocently. "What are you up to tonight?"

"Why?" Leia asked, suddenly suspicious.

"I was talking to Rieekan, and he agreed that it would be a good idea to have a bit of a party. It's been a while."

"What kind of party, Han?"

"For the procurement crew. You know, the ones who make sure the fighter pilots have the ships they need when they blow the Imps to hell, and what not? Seemed like they weren't getting enough credit."

Leia smiled, standing on tiptoes to give him a quick kiss on the cheek. "I think they'd like that, Captain. I think they'd like that very much."

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Hey everybody! Thanks for indulging my other love—politics—as I tried to take the eternal advice of "write what you know." I think for my next challenge I'm going back to long form: I have a story in mind that will be an AU for Return of the Jedi that will put Han and Leia on an unexpected mission for the Alliance. Coming soon! ~radioboca


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